Aiming to level things up in their playoff first-round series, the Detroit Pistons will welcome the New York Knicks to Little Caesars Arena for the second time in three days on Sunday evening.
Having put themselves back in the driving seat with a hard-fought 118-116 victory, the Knicks have the opportunity to move within one win of eliminating their hosts before returning to New York for Game Five.
Match preview
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On an expectant night where fans pulled up to watch their team host a playoff game for the first time since 2019, the Detroit Pistons just about fell short of the challenge of the Knicks in Friday's Game Three.
JB Bickerstaff's men spent just over 44 of the 48 minutes of action trailing and eventually fell to a narrow two-point defeat despite battling hard to keep the contest competitive for as long as possible.
While the Pistons will undoubtedly be disappointed not to have made home advantage count, they will be buoyed by the return of Tim Hardaway Jr to his best as he notched a joint team-high 24 points—alongside Cade Cunningham—off the back of a scoreless Game Two.
The Pistons will now set out to even the series at two wins apiece if they are to avoid moving one step closer to an early exit like they suffered to the Milwaukee Bucks in their last playoff campaign six years ago.
Having continued their trend of turning over the ball on more occasions than their upcoming opponents across the first three matches, Sunday's visitors will need to limit their sloppiness in possession, which has proven to be an Achilles' heel.
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After coming back from a 15-point deficit to level matters down the stretch, the New York Knicks were eventually undone in the final knockings of their Game Two defeat and were keen to fly out of the blocks last time out.
Tom Thibodeau's men managed to do just that and headed into the locker room up by a whopping 13 points for their largest half-time advantage in a match since leading the Atlanta Hawks 78-53 on April 5.
Nonetheless, the Knicks still needed to be their best to stave off the Pistons' second-half resurgence, thanks in no small part to 30-point performances from All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Just over a day after receiving the Clutch Player of the Year award, Brunson showed his decisive quality in crucial moments once again, racking up eight of his side's final 10 points and 12 of the Knicks' 25-point tally in the fourth quarter.
Aiming to reach the Eastern Conference semi-finals for the second season running, Sunday's visitors will seek to get the better of the hosts in their own backyard once again but will need to maintain a high level from start to finish as they did last time out.
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Team News
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With the exception of Ariel Hukporti (knee), the Knicks have everybody available for this one, and no changes are expected here with regard to the starting lineup.
Delivering yet another 30-point game last time out, Brunson continued his relentless attacking barrage in the postseason, making him one to keep an eye on.
Jaden Ivey is out of contention for the Pistons with a broken left fibula, but there is optimism that the guard will be cleared to return to action in the near future.
Twenty-three-year-old Isaiah Stewart has missed the last two games of the series due to a knee problem and remains a doubt for this weekend's encounter.
Detroit Pistons possible starting five:
Cunningham, Thompson; Hardaway Jr, Harris; Duren
New York Knicks possible starting five:
Brunson, Hart; Bridges, Anunoby; Towns
We say: Pistons to win by 4+ points
Sunday's game is borderline a must-win game for the Pistons, who will be desperate to avoid going back to New York down 3-1 in the series.
We can see the home side doing enough to carry the day at the sound of the final buzzer.
Adepoju Marvellous
