Karl-Anthony Towns Powers New York Knicks Past Pistons to Avert 0-4 Start
Key Takeaways
- •Karl-Anthony Towns paced the Knicks with a game-high 27 points and a season-best 20 rebounds, including 13 points during a decisive third-quarter run.
- •New York outscored Detroit 37-13 in the third quarter to overturn an early deficit and secure the 111-97 home victory.
- •The win prevented the Knicks from becoming the first defending NBA champion to start 0-4 since the Boston Celtics in 1969-70, and it snapped their six-game losing streak against the Pistons.
- •Detroit suffered its first loss after opening 3-0, missing the chance at the franchise's first 4-0 start since the 2018-19 season.
- •Jalen Brunson added 23 points and seven assists for New York, while Paul Reed's 22 points and Cade Cunningham's 19-point, nine-rebound, eight-assist performance led Detroit.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 13 of his game-high 27 points during a decisive third-quarter run as the host New York Knicks rallied past the Detroit Pistons, 111-97, on Tuesday for their first win of the season.
Towns, acquired from the Minnesota Timberwolves ahead of the 2024-25 season, also pulled down a season-high 20 rebounds in the game at Madison Square Garden.
New York outscored Detroit 37-13 in the third quarter and then held off a late rally, avoiding what would have been the first 0-4 start by a defending NBA champion since the Boston Celtics in 1969-70. The Knicks began the season as the league's reigning champion, a status the franchise last held at the start of the 1973-74 campaign following its 1973 title. The win lifted the Knicks to 1-3, while the Pistons, who had opened the season with three consecutive victories, dropped to 3-1.
Jalen Brunson, who joined the Knicks in free agency in 2022, produced 23 points and seven assists. OG Anunoby and reserve Landry Shamet scored 13 points apiece, Mikal Bridges finished with 12, and veteran center Andre Drummond added 10 points off the bench.
The result snapped the Knicks' six-game losing streak against the Pistons, who won all three meetings between the teams last season by an average margin of 28 points.
Paul Reed had 22 points and nine rebounds for Detroit, which was denied a fourth consecutive victory. The Pistons had been seeking the franchise's first 4-0 start since the 2018-19 season, when Drummond, now a Knicks reserve, was a two-time All-Star for Detroit.
Cade Cunningham, the first overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft, flirted with a triple-double, finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Duncan Robinson recorded 12 points, while Ausar Thompson and reserve Daniss Jenkins each added 11.
Detroit seized early control, closing the first quarter on a 15-5 run and taking a 38-25 lead on Reed's 3-pointer with 2.8 seconds left in the period. The Knicks responded after halftime, swinging the game with their dominant third quarter before closing out the 14-point victory.
— Reuters
