Knicks Tip Pistons in 2 OT

By | 2016-10-28T17:58:00-08:00 February 28th, 2015|News|Comments Off on Knicks Tip Pistons in 2 OT

The New York Knicks had lost three rough games out of the All-Star break, and still hadn’t found their way without star forward Carmelo Anthony. But Friday night against the Detroit Pistons, Derek Fisher’s players showed that even the loss of one of their top teammates can’t keep them down.

Coach Fish’s crew overcame an 18-point deficit on the road, and behind 25 points from Andrea Bargnani, the Knicks topped the Pistons 121-115 in double overtime.

“I think it shows the character we have in the locker room,” Fish said of the victory, which snapped an eight-game losing streak. “Obviously, it hasn’t been easy this season, but high-character guys and guys that have high integrity, they’ll keep coming back. No matter what happens the night before, they’ll keep coming back. As coaches, we’re happy for our players more than anything.”

New York Knicks v Detroit Pistons

Bargnani was the man all night for the Knicks, adding 12 rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block to his team-high 25 points. The big man was firing from the start, knocking down a trifecta to open the game. New York built an early seven-point lead, but the Pistons came right back, leaning on their big man duo of Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond to take a 28-23 lead after one.

The New York offense sputtered in the second quarter, where the second unit shot just 30.8 percent for 18 points. Fish commented after the game that he’s still working on finding a balance on his new-look roster, searching for a strong starting unit while still leaving enough talent and experience to lead that second group.

Guided by Jodie Meeks, the Pistons second unit won out this time, building a 53-41 lead at the break. However, as the Knicks approached making a second-half comeback, they went back to some key principles Coach Fish has been instilling since he arrived.

“We just continued to challenge our guys on taking some individual and collective pride in who they are and how they perform each night,” Derek said. “In this league, there are no nights off, there isn’t anything easy, and you have to take ownership of what’s going on out there. They came out and gave us a great effort in the second half.”

Bargnani led the charge, tallying nine points off 4-of-5 shooting, and Tim Hardaway Jr. hit once from deep to chip in five more points. The biggest change, however, was on the defensive end.

The Knicks got physical, fouling the Pistons eight times, and it worked. Detroit shot just 2-of-16 from the field, and New York cut the deficit to three, 69-66, for the fourth quarter.

By the end of three, Hardaway had 14 points, but it was Bargnani on top with 17. The seven-foot Italian has been hampered by injuries and was playing in just his seventh full game since January 2014. As Derek explained afterward, it has been a long journey back for the big man, but he’s finally hitting his stride.

“He is continuing to shake the rust off,” D-Fish said of Bargnani. “He was aggressive and confident from the beginning. I think we all know he has this potential, and I think he’s excited and looking forward to being healthy. We’re happy for him. It has been a long road.”

New York Knicks v Detroit Pistons

In the fourth quarter, the Pistons looked back to Drummond, as well as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and former Oklahoma City Thunder guard Reggie Jackson, who recently came over at the trade deadline. The trio combined for 18 points, and Jodie Meeks added another six to put the Pistons on top 95-90 going into the final minute.

In this scenario, Fish and the Knicks would love to turn to one of the game’s best closers in Anthony. But in his absence, this is the exact scenario where the Knicks have often come up short.

New York Knicks v Detroit Pistons

But in the Motor City, things were different. It started on the defensive end, where New York held Detroit scoreless for the final three minutes of regulation. Then with 31 seconds to go, Lou Amundson worked inside for two, setting the stage for the Knicks gutsy rookie to make a big play.

First-year man Langston Galloway came through as he has several times this season, knocking down a clutch trifecta with six seconds on the clock, tying the game at 95 and forcing overtime.

“Langston statistically wasn’t overpowering,” Fish said of his rookie guard, who finished with just 12 points. “But he’s not afraid of anything out there on either end of the floor. Even when things don’t go well, he just keeps coming back. As a young guy, he’s a good example for all of us to just keep persevering and keep fighting hard. That was a really big basket for us to keep extending the game, and we got the win, so I know that makes him feel even better.”

In the extra periods, Fish turned to another young guard, Shane Larkin, to carry his team home. Larkin played all but 12 seconds of the two extra periods, holding Jackson to just two points—none of which came in the second OT.

Larkin was scoreless in the first, as neither team could deliver the late dagger, sparking a second extra period. Then in the second OT, it was all Larkin late.

The second-year guard had missed the last three games with an illness, leaving his full services in question against the Pistons. But when the Knicks needed him the most, he came through. With time ticking down, he sized up Jackson, drove the lane and dropped in a tough floater through contact.

“He’s a young guy, and I think he missed the game, being away from it when he wasn’t feeling well,” Fish said of Larkin. “We weren’t sure if he would be able to play that many minutes, but he competed really hard. He was playing against a top-notch guard in Reggie Jackson, and he didn’t back off of him at all.”

He finished the three-point play at the line, then he and Hardaway went on to go 6-of-6 from the charity stripe to close out the victory.

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