Despite an awful shooting performance, theNew York Knicks overcame the Detroit Pistons 94–85 on Wednesday night. Coming off a poor win against the Timberwolves on Tuesday, the Knicks weren’t able to find their shooting efficiency against Detroit, hitting just 25.8% from three-point range and 38.3% from the field. In the first half, the Knicks weren’t able to crack five made three-point shots, holding a slim lead over the Pistons.
In the third quarter, Detroit pulled away with a double-digit lead, leaving the Knicks in their dust as Saddiq Bey contributed 32 points and Hamidou Diallo posted 31 and 13 rebounds.
Despite New York’s awful first half, they marched back with a resilient performance in the fourth quarter, posting 30 points and holding Detroit to just 14. The entire second team carried New York to victory, especially Alec Burks, who contributed 34 points over 27 minutes, in addition to three steals and four rebounds.
Second-year guard Immanuel Quickley also provided the team with a spark, recording 18 points over 35 minutes, completely supplementing Evan Fournier, who sat out due to a sore right ankle.
The starting team performed poorly, with Julius Randle posting five points and a -27 +/-. While RJ Barrett recorded 15, his -29 +/- told a story of his defensive efficiency. After three consecutive games with double-digit point production, rookie guard Quentin Grimes was unable to get on the score sheet, missing all five of his three-point attempts over 13 minutes.
Without an incredibly resilient effort from the second team, the Knicks might’ve dropped an extremely disappointing game to a team that has only won five contests this season. Once again, the second team stepped up and carried New York to victory, indicating once again the team has significant issues with the starting five.
The combination of Kemba Walker and Julius Randle posted just seven total points, a significant downturn after Walker returned from exile with a bang. Nonetheless, the Knicks will look ahead to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night. Tom Thibodeau‘s team has a chance to string together four consecutive victories, despite some of them being rather ugly. Oklahoma City has won just 12 games this season.