Mitchell Robinson, Kemba Walker help Knicks get big win over Pistons at Garden

This is the Mitchell Robinson that Knicks fans have been waiting for.

Robinson turned in a monster game when the Knicks needed it most and the result was a rare home win as the Knicks defeated the Detroit Pistons, 105-91, at Madison Square Garden.

Robinson, who grabbed 14 rebounds, had three blocks and scored 17 points, said he was determined before the game to come out and make a difference.

"I needed to come out with energy today," Robinson said in his on the court interview after the game. "We needed to come out and turn this thing around."

The win ended a five-game home losing streak for the Knicks (14-17). It was also just their second win in their last eight games.

"You can’t say enough about what Mitch did," Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said. "That’s his best game right there. That’s a monster game. Big play after big play."

It was the second straight start for Kemba Walker, who appears to be determined to get his old starting job back.

Walker, who scored 29 points Saturday in Boston, had 21 points with eight rebounds and five assists against the Pistons. More importantly, with Walker running the point, the Knicks starters seem to have finally found their chemistry.

Not only did Walker get Robinson going early, but he led a balanced offensive attack as three Knicks finished with 20 or more points.

In addition to Walker’s 21, Evan Fournier scored 22 and Julius Randle added 21 with 11 rebounds.

The Pistons were led by Saben Lee’s 16 points.

"Kemba, that man is special," Robinson said. "I like having him on my team."

The Knicks appeared to take control of the game for when they opened the third quarter with an 11-0 run that was capped when Walker found Robinson for an alley-oop dunk that gave the Knicks a 61-40 lead with 9:18 left in the third.

They struggled, however, to close out to the quarter and then found themselves in a tight game with a young, athletic Pistons team. Mitchell came up with some big plays in the final quarter, and Walker scored nine of his 21 points in the final period.

A loss to the Pistons would have been humbling for the Knicks. Detroit, which starts three 20-year-olds, has the worst record in the league. Until they beat the Heat Sunday in Detroit, the Pistons had a 14-game losing streak. That win was their first since they beat the Indiana Pacers in Detroit on Nov. 17.

Walker got his second straight start because the Knicks had six players on COVID-19 protocol and point guard Derrick Rose was out with a sore ankle. Thibodeau didn’t announce until an hour and a half before the game that Walker would be getting his second straight start.

Before scoring 29 points in a loss at Boston on Saturday, Walker had not played for six straight games. After that game against his former team, Walker told reporters that he "hated" being tied to the bench and he knew he "should be playing." He also indicated that there hadn’t been any communication between him and Thibodeau since the coach told him he was taking him out of the starting lineup.

Thibodeau said after practice on Monday that he understood his point guard’s frustration.

"I talk to the team and then I talk to every player appropriately," he said. "That’s what the head coach’s job is. But I have an appreciation for frustration. He’s an accomplished player. I have to do what I think is best for the team. And that’s how I’m going to make my decisions."

By Barbara Barker

barbara.barker@newsday.commeanbarb

Barbara Barker is an award-winning columnist and features writer in the sports department at Newsday. She has covered sports in New York for more than 20 years.