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Game 4 was another heartbreaker for the Detroit Pistons, who were on the wrong end of a missed call that cost them a chance to win.
The Pistons are now facing an elimination game, and will take on the New York Knicks in Game 5 on April 29 at 7:30 p.m. A dominant performance from Cade Cunningham (25 points, 10 assists, 10 rebounds and four blocks) wasn't enough to handle the Knicks' dual onslaught from Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson.
Down 3-1 in the series, the Pistons will need to make adjustments to increase their odds of forcing a Game 6 in Detroit. Here are three keys for Game 5.
More: Pistons-Knicks playoff series should be tied, but this is far from over
The All-Star guard has lived up to his “Captain Clutch” nickname. He scored 15 points in the fourth quarter in Game 4 to help the Knicks close an 11-point gap with less than nine minutes to play. In Game 3, he led everyone with 12 points in the final period to lead the Knicks to another down-to-the-wire win.
Ausar Thompson is the Pistons’ most capable defender on Brunson, by a wide margin. The Knicks guard was so frustrated by Thompson’s defense in Game 1 that he excitedly held up six fingers — representing six fouls — after getting the Pistons’ wing to foul out of the game in the fourth quarter.
But Thompson has been glued to the bench in fourth quarters during their last three games, finishing with two minutes and 12 seconds played in Games 2, two seconds in Game 3 and two minutes and 44 seconds in game four. The coaching staff has largely relied on the other four starters in late game situations, with Thompson’s minutes largely going to Dennis Schröder instead.
Bickerstaff has prioritized lineups with spacing and ballhandling, maximizing the Pistons’ chances to find the bottom of the net, and avoid turnovers and other careless mistakes, when the pace of the game slows and teams typically have to engineer scoring opportunities against set defenses. Though Thompson has been overall productive in his minutes, he’s largely relied on dunks and putbacks to score.
Opposing teams are content to leave him open from 3, where he’s missed his lone attempt this series, and instead pack the paint to deny scoring opportunities for Cunningham. The instinct to prioritize offense at the ends of games is understandable, but they also have to slow down Brunson. Perhaps there’s a better balance to be found.
More: Mitch Albom: Refs blew the call but Pistons must learn from another missed opportunity
Towns has gone from non-factor to dominant force. He was held scoreless on 0-for-3 shooting in the second half of Game 2 as Brunson took over, but bounced back with 31 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in Game 3 and 27 points, nine rebounds and the game-winning 3-pointers in Game 4.
The Pistons’ best Towns-stopper, Isaiah Stewart, has yet to play a game since exiting the fourth quarter in Game 1 with right knee inflammation and is questionable heading into Game 5. Tobias Harris did an effective job containing Towns in Game 2 and has defended him admirably in the two games sense, but he’s giving up several inches of height and 20 pounds, and the size disparity has become more obvious each game.
The reality is that, outside of Stewart, the Pistons don’t have an ideal Towns defender. Harris and Paul Reed both give up size and weight, and stretch, offense-minded bigs have frequently posed a problem for Jalen Duren defensively. If Stewart has to sit out once again, they’ll have to embrace a by-committee defensive approach and hope Towns doesn’t hit ridiculous shots in crunch time like he did in Game 4.
More: Detroit Pistons furious with 'blatant' missed foul call that cost them Game 4 vs Knicks
The Pistons have won three of their last four games at the historic venue, including two wins during the regular season. It’s a team that was just as good on the road as it was at home this past season, and they seem to rise to the moment while in a hostile environment.
Their Game 2 win at the Garden on April 21 is the franchise’s most significant win in nearly two decades, marking their first postseason win since 2008. Instead of folding after dropping Game 1, Cunningham stepped up with 33 points and 12 assists in a star performance that solidified his standing as their franchise player.
It’s win-or-go-home, so the Pistons obviously need to find a way to feed off the negative energy and pull off a victory.
It’ll be a dogfight, like every game in this series has been, and the Pistons will bring the game down to the wire thanks to their rugged defense and physicality. But the cold reality is that the Knicks have two players in Towns and Brunson who can find ways to score in any circumstance, and the Pistons have one. In front of their home crowd, the Knicks should take care of business. The pick: Knicks 112, Pistons 107
[ MUST WATCH: "The Pistons Pulse" your go-to Detroit Pistons podcast, listen available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify). ]
Contact Omari Sankofa II at [email protected]. Follow him on X and/or Bluesky.
Follow the Detroit Free Press on Instagram (@detroitfreepress), TikTok (@detroitfreepress), YouTube (@DetroitFreePress), X (@freep), and LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook (@detroitfreepress).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Pistons-Knicks Game 5 scouting report, prediction: New York pair dominant
Continue reading...
The Pistons are now facing an elimination game, and will take on the New York Knicks in Game 5 on April 29 at 7:30 p.m. A dominant performance from Cade Cunningham (25 points, 10 assists, 10 rebounds and four blocks) wasn't enough to handle the Knicks' dual onslaught from Karl-Anthony Towns and Jalen Brunson.
Down 3-1 in the series, the Pistons will need to make adjustments to increase their odds of forcing a Game 6 in Detroit. Here are three keys for Game 5.
More: Pistons-Knicks playoff series should be tied, but this is far from over
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Is Thompson the answer to their Brunson problem?
The All-Star guard has lived up to his “Captain Clutch” nickname. He scored 15 points in the fourth quarter in Game 4 to help the Knicks close an 11-point gap with less than nine minutes to play. In Game 3, he led everyone with 12 points in the final period to lead the Knicks to another down-to-the-wire win.
Ausar Thompson is the Pistons’ most capable defender on Brunson, by a wide margin. The Knicks guard was so frustrated by Thompson’s defense in Game 1 that he excitedly held up six fingers — representing six fouls — after getting the Pistons’ wing to foul out of the game in the fourth quarter.
But Thompson has been glued to the bench in fourth quarters during their last three games, finishing with two minutes and 12 seconds played in Games 2, two seconds in Game 3 and two minutes and 44 seconds in game four. The coaching staff has largely relied on the other four starters in late game situations, with Thompson’s minutes largely going to Dennis Schröder instead.
Bickerstaff has prioritized lineups with spacing and ballhandling, maximizing the Pistons’ chances to find the bottom of the net, and avoid turnovers and other careless mistakes, when the pace of the game slows and teams typically have to engineer scoring opportunities against set defenses. Though Thompson has been overall productive in his minutes, he’s largely relied on dunks and putbacks to score.
Opposing teams are content to leave him open from 3, where he’s missed his lone attempt this series, and instead pack the paint to deny scoring opportunities for Cunningham. The instinct to prioritize offense at the ends of games is understandable, but they also have to slow down Brunson. Perhaps there’s a better balance to be found.
More: Mitch Albom: Refs blew the call but Pistons must learn from another missed opportunity
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Is there an answer for KAT?
Towns has gone from non-factor to dominant force. He was held scoreless on 0-for-3 shooting in the second half of Game 2 as Brunson took over, but bounced back with 31 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in Game 3 and 27 points, nine rebounds and the game-winning 3-pointers in Game 4.
The Pistons’ best Towns-stopper, Isaiah Stewart, has yet to play a game since exiting the fourth quarter in Game 1 with right knee inflammation and is questionable heading into Game 5. Tobias Harris did an effective job containing Towns in Game 2 and has defended him admirably in the two games sense, but he’s giving up several inches of height and 20 pounds, and the size disparity has become more obvious each game.
The reality is that, outside of Stewart, the Pistons don’t have an ideal Towns defender. Harris and Paul Reed both give up size and weight, and stretch, offense-minded bigs have frequently posed a problem for Jalen Duren defensively. If Stewart has to sit out once again, they’ll have to embrace a by-committee defensive approach and hope Towns doesn’t hit ridiculous shots in crunch time like he did in Game 4.
More: Detroit Pistons furious with 'blatant' missed foul call that cost them Game 4 vs Knicks
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Can they win at Madison Square Garden?
The Pistons have won three of their last four games at the historic venue, including two wins during the regular season. It’s a team that was just as good on the road as it was at home this past season, and they seem to rise to the moment while in a hostile environment.
Their Game 2 win at the Garden on April 21 is the franchise’s most significant win in nearly two decades, marking their first postseason win since 2008. Instead of folding after dropping Game 1, Cunningham stepped up with 33 points and 12 assists in a star performance that solidified his standing as their franchise player.
It’s win-or-go-home, so the Pistons obviously need to find a way to feed off the negative energy and pull off a victory.
Knicks vs Pistons score prediction for Game 5
It’ll be a dogfight, like every game in this series has been, and the Pistons will bring the game down to the wire thanks to their rugged defense and physicality. But the cold reality is that the Knicks have two players in Towns and Brunson who can find ways to score in any circumstance, and the Pistons have one. In front of their home crowd, the Knicks should take care of business. The pick: Knicks 112, Pistons 107
[ MUST WATCH: "The Pistons Pulse" your go-to Detroit Pistons podcast, listen available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify). ]
Contact Omari Sankofa II at [email protected]. Follow him on X and/or Bluesky.
Follow the Detroit Free Press on Instagram (@detroitfreepress), TikTok (@detroitfreepress), YouTube (@DetroitFreePress), X (@freep), and LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook (@detroitfreepress).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Pistons-Knicks Game 5 scouting report, prediction: New York pair dominant
Continue reading...
