Knicks beat unbeaten Pistons 111-97 for first win, avoid historic 0-4 start

The New York Knicks have their first win of the season. On Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden they beat the Detroit Pistons 111-97, handing the Eastern Conference leaders their first loss and keeping the defending champions from an 0-4 start. Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points and 20 rebounds, and New York took control in the middle two quarters.

The Associated Press recap carried by ESPN put the stakes in historical terms. Only one defending champion has started 0-4: the 1969-70 Boston Celtics. One more loss would have matched them. The win also ended Detroit's run of six straight regular-season wins over New York. That streak included three blowouts last season, among them 121-90 and 118-80.

The game started badly. Detroit scored 38 points in the first quarter and led by as many as 15, with Paul Reed, starting for the injured Jalen Duren, controlling the glass. Then New York outscored the Pistons 63-25 across the second and third quarters. An 11-0 run opened the second half, and by the third-quarter buzzer the lead was 25. ESPN's Vincent Goodwill reported that coach Mike Brown challenged Towns at halftime to get a body on Reed. In the first three games the Knicks had been outscored by 26 points after halftime, so a strong second half was a change in its own right.

Jalen Brunson went 5-for-18 and scored 23 points. He went 1-for-9 in the first half but made his first three shots after the break, and his drives fouled out Ausar Thompson as Detroit made its late push. Mikal Bridges had not made a 3-pointer all season and went 4-for-4 from deep for 12 points. Cade Cunningham had 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, but shot 4-of-14 after the first quarter. Brown did not pretend one night had fixed everything. "Is it fixed? No. it ain't fixed," he told ESPN.

What it means for Chicago

There is no time to dwell on it. The Knicks play at Chicago on Wednesday, October 28, the second night of a back-to-back. Their first three losses came by six, four and nine points against Philadelphia, Boston and Orlando, so the margins have been small. The Bulls are also 1-3 and have lost two straight.

New York is a clear favorite on this site's board, which tracks 12 venues. On Novig, one of those venues, the Knicks are -257 on the moneyline and the Bulls are +251. The spread is wider on Novig: New York is listed at -7.5 for +102. The best Knicks number anywhere is a point shorter, -6.5 at -118 on DraftKings. Novig has the total at 232.5, with the over at +104. Pinnacle's 232 at -109 is the best over price elsewhere. The board spread is narrow, a point on the spread and half a point on the total, with sportsbook hold running from about 2.9% to 5.1% depending on the market. Current numbers are on the game page.

The question for Wednesday is whether the effort from the middle quarters against Detroit carries over to the next night on the road. The full season record is on the Knicks team page.