A Sense of Doubt blog post #3717 - PISTONS WIN!! First Playoff Victory Since 2008

A Sense of Doubt blog post #3717 - PISTONS WIN!! First Playoff Victory Since 2008

PISTONS SEASONS

PISTONS MAIN WIKI

The Detroit Pistons changed how I internalize and fixate on sports.

In 2005, when one of their losses, probably not the final loss but in the series, after watching the whole game, I couldn't sleep. It was like I was one of the players (and this is when dreams of being on the team started). So upset was I from their loss and what it meant for their chances to win a consecutive championship after humiliating the LA Lakers "super team" the year before that I barely slept, tossing and turning, unable to calm down.

And they did lose that year. They lost to the San Antonio Spurs in seven games. It was one of five championships the Spurs would win from 1999 to 2014. 2005 was the last Finals appearance for the Detroit Pistons, who would win their last playoff game in 2008 (2007-2008) in the conference finals versus the Celtics, who would go on to beat the Lakers behind the awesome power of Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Ray Allen. Despite a brief return in 2013-14, it was the last year for Chauncey Billups with the Pistons when he was traded in November (2008, after 2007-2008 season) along with McDyess for Allen Iverson. Ben Wallace was already gone. Sixth man Corliss Williamson was gone after the 2004 championship. Though Rip Hamilton, Tayshaun Prince, and Rasheed Wallace remained, the Pistons would be swept by the Cavaliers in the first round of the 2009 Playoffs (2008-2009 season).

And now, after winning only seventeen games in 2022-23 (17-65) and only fourteen in 2023-24 (14-68), they are back in the playoffs!! And they won their first playoff game in seventeen years!!

It's been a tough road. Before this year, the Pistons highest win total was twenty-three in 2021-22. The Pistons suffered through a long injury of star Cade Cunningham in 2022-23 in which he only played in twelve games. And in 2023-24, the Pistons set a dubious record for longest single season losing streak in NBA history: 28 games from October 30th to December 30th.

All of that history of defeats and losing and almosts came back to haunt me and all of us Pistons fans during Game One of the NBA Playoffs versus the New York Knicks at the Garden when after leading the ENTIRE GAME, the Pistons collapsed and let the Knicks go on a 21-0 run to win the game.

I almost had another sleepless night.

The memory of being swept when last in the last two times in the playoffs (2015-16 vs the Cavs and 2018-19 vs the Bucks) came back to haunt us all.

But the game was lost less from the Knicks being dominant as from the Pistons making too many costly mistakes.

Knowing that the Pistons beat the Knicks three out of four times in the regular season -- and both of the games in New York -- and even that game, on Nov. 1st, to drop the team to 1-5 was before they found their identity and locked in to finishing 44-38 for the season.

I knew they would respond in Game Two. If they could minimize turnovers, dominate inside offensively and defensively, if they could hit just a few more shots off good possessions rather than trying to play hero ball, they would win.

And they won.

The Knicks did not make it easy. They stormed back to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, but new Piston Dennis Schroder hit a killer three, and the Knicks just couldn't get the lead and hold it.

My Dad would have loved this game!

I thought about this a lot, about watching the game with Dad, recapping it. This recap of the Pistons history and this game is for you, Dad. I miss you every day.




https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2025/04/21/pistons-knicks-score-game-2-recap/83201400007/

Detroit Pistons upset New York Knicks in Game 2 for first playoff win since 2008, 100-94

NEW YORK — The streak is over. 

The Detroit Pistons took care of business at Madison Square Garden on Monday, defeating the New York Knicks 100-94 in Game 2 to tie the series at 1-1.

The Pistons’ last playoff win was on May 26, 2008, when they beat the Boston Celtics 94-75 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals. They had lost 15 consecutive playoff games entering Monday, an NBA record, with sweeps in 2009, 2016 and 2019. 

Jalen Brunson scored 14 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter, and extended a late 16-4 Knicks run by pump-faking a 3-point attempt and drawing the foul on Tobias Harris, making both to cut the Pistons’ lead to 94-92. Josh Hart managed to get open for a dunk on the other end, tying the game at 94 with 1:24 to play.

Dennis Schröder saved the day for the Pistons, knocking down a 3-pointer with 56.3 seconds on the clock to give them the lead again, 97-94. He split a trip at the line with 8.1 seconds left to make it a two-possession game, and Brunson’s 3-pointer on the other end missed before Jalen Duren clinched it with two more free throws.

Cade Cunningham led the way for the Pistons with 33 points (11-for-21 overall) and 12 rebounds. Schröder added 20 points off of the bench, and Tobias Harris scored 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. 

Cade Cunningham thrives in Game 2

During Game 1 on Saturday, Cunningham scored 21 points but was held to 8-for-21 (38.1%) overall shooting. He nearly topped that output in the first half on Monday. 

He scored 20 of his 33 points in the first half on 7-for-12 shooting. The Pistons were able to consistently switch OG Anunoby off of Cunningham and he made the rest of the Knicks’ defenders pay. He drove right through and past Mikal Bridges on multiple possessions, took advantage of his size advantage over Brunson and even got to the line a few times, thanks to a friendly whistle.

Midway through the second quarter, Cunningham drew back-to-back bump fouls on Anunoby and Hart and made all four free throws to extend the Pistons lead to 13, 48-35, and capped the first half by drawing another bump foul on Hart with 31 seconds on the clock, followed by a hesitation move and layup past Anunoby with 1.9 seconds left. 

Cunningham carried the offense in the third, scoring nine points on 4-for-7 shooting as the rest of the team went 4-for-14 from the floor. He was responsible for back-to-back Pistons buckets midway through the period that gave them their biggest lead of the night, 68-53. In transition, he lost Bridges with a behind-the-back move and finished a one-handed dunk.

His first assist of the night wasn’t until the 5:03 mark of the third, driving baseline and finding Reed with a dump-off pass. It was an attack-first mindset all night.

Defense holds up without Stewart 

Without their best defender, the Pistons were able to collectively hold their own defensively. Their best quarter, similar to Saturday, was the third period — they only outscored the Knicks 20-18, but held them to 6-for-18 (33%) shooting in the period. They held the Knicks to 35.1% shooting in the second half. 

J.B. Bickerstaff mentioned before the game that Duren would have to step up with Stewart out. The third-year big man had a quiet playoff debut and wasn’t able to help slow the Knicks’ 21-0 run in the fourth, which began right after Stewart exited the game for good. He was better on Monday, avoiding early foul trouble even though he finished the night with five.

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2025/04/21/detroit-pistons-tie-up-the-series-1-1-social-media-reaction-roundup/83205359007/

It was a nail-biter for the Detroit Pistons, but a win is a win in the end.

Fending off a Knicks fourth-quarter comeback, the Pistons held on for a 100-94 win Monday night at Madison Square Garden. The win evened the series at 1-1 and also snapped the Pistons' NBA-record 15-game playoff losing streak.

Pistons star Cade Cunningham led the way with 33 points and 12 rebounds, one of three Pistons to record a double-double in the game. Detroit also got a massive performance from point guard Dennis Schröder, who scored 20 points and made a key 3-pointer down the stretch.

This is the first time the Pistons have won a playoff game since Game 4 of the 2008 Eastern Conference Finals against the eventual champion Boston Celtics.

Here's a roundup of some reactions from the Pistons win:

https://www.espn.com/nba/recap/_/gameId/401768041

ESPN video highlights

NEW YORK -- — Cade Cunningham wasn't thinking about himself after the first postseason victory of his career. His focus was on all the Detroit fans who stuck by the Pistons during 17 years since the last one.

Now Cunningham and his teammates want to give those fans more than just a game. They want to get them a series.

Cunningham had 33 points and 12 rebounds, Dennis Schroder made the tiebreaking 3-pointer with 55 seconds left, and the Pistons snapped their NBA-record, 15-game postseason losing streak by beating the New York Knicks 100-94 on Monday night in Game 2 of their playoff series.

“It’s a great feeling. It feels good to represent the city like we did tonight,” Cunningham said. “It’s something that the city been waiting on for a long time, so we feel good about it and we’re ready to get back to the crib and perform in front of them.”

The Pistons, who hadn’t even been to the postseason since 2019, recovered after the Knicks erased a 15-point deficit to earn their first playoff victory since Game 4 of the 2008 Eastern Conference finals against Boston. The Celtics won the final two games of that series and the Pistons were then swept in 2009, 2016 and 2019 before dropping Game 1 at Madison Square Garden.

Now they are back in the win column, all tied in the series and will host Game 3 on Thursday night.

Schroder, who wasn’t even on the Pistons until a trade in February, nailed the 3-pointer after the Knicks had used a 16-4 run to tie it at 94 on Josh Hart’s dunk. He finished with 20 points off the bench.

The Pistons engineered one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history this season, going 44-38 after a 14-win season in 2023-24 that included a 28-game losing streak, longest ever in a single season.

They were then in good shape to win Game 1 with an eight-point lead after three quarters, before the Knicks used a 21-0 run in the fourth to win 123-112. Detroit built another eight-point advantage after three Monday, and this time made the big plays after another Knicks rally.

“We got bigger things we’re out here for,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “So our focus, and that’s why our guys have been able to grow and be consistent, because they just think about the now and I thought they did a great job tonight of staying in the moment and Jalen Brunson scored 37 points for the No. 3-seeded Knicks, but Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby were each limited to 10 after both finished with 23 points in the opener.

“And now it’s on us to respond,” Brunson said.

Cunningham bounced back with a strong performance after the All-Star guard was just 8 for 21 in Game 1. The Knicks struggled to keep him out of the paint and defend him without fouling, as the Pistons shot 14 free throws to the Knicks’ two while building a 55-49 lead at halftime. Doing what we needed to do.”

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- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 2504.22 - 10:10

- Days ago: MOM = 3582 days ago & DAD = 236 days ago

- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I post Hey Mom blog entries on special occasions. I post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day, and now I have a second count for Days since my Dad died on August 28, 2024. I am now in the same time zone as Google! So, when I post at 10:10 a.m. PDT to coincide with the time of Mom's death, I am now actually posting late, so it's really 1:10 p.m. EDT. But I will continue to use the time stamp of 10:10 a.m. to remember the time of her death and sometimes 13:40 EDT for the time of Dad's death. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.