The New York Knicks lost their home opener to the Pistons despite opening up a massive lead behind the excellent play of Kristaps Porinzigs.
- Detroit Pistons 111 (2-1)
- New York Knicks 107 (0-2)
- NBA, Final, Box Score
- Madison Square Garden, New York City
They had a 21-point lead on the Pistons with a little less than four minutes remaining in the second quarter. Kristaps Porzingis scored 23 points in the first half on 8-of-10 shooting. But Detroit was resilient, cutting the lead down to 13 at halftime.
Detroit outscored New York 28-16 in the third quarter, slicing their lead to one entering the final period. Porzingis put up eight points in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough. Long Island native Tobias Harris took over for the Pistons; scoring 12 of his 31 in the fourth.
Key Stat
Just like against Oklahoma City, New York was bullied inside by Detroit. The Pistons scored 54 points in the paint. Andre Drummond committed a lot to that cause with 18 of his 21 points coming in the paint.
Key Player
The most talked about storyline after the first game of the season was Willy Hernangomez, a first-team All-Rookie selection, playing just four minutes of garbage time.
Jeff Hornacek took things a step further on Saturday. Willy took a DNP. Enes Kanter and Kyle O’Quinn played 22 minutes apiece.