Detroit Pistons vs New York Knicks

The Detroit Pistons prepare to host New York Knicks for a second time in three days at Little Caesars Arena during their playoff first-round series on Sunday evening.

A tough-fought 118-116 victory has put the Knicks in position for Game Four victory that could eliminate the Pistons before their upcoming home game in New York.

The Detroit Pistons wrestled with defeat after a signal night of playoff football attracted passionate fans to see their return to competition since 2019.

Bickerstaff's team spent the majority of 44 minutes behind throughout the gameplay before succumbing to a close two-point loss while maintaining intense competition throughout the match.

The Pistons must generate two series victories at this point to escape elimination like their previous playoff disappearance against Milwaukee six years back.

Sunday's visitors keep their ball giveaways lower than their opponents during matches but must reduce this mark against Chicago because sloppiness accounts for their main weakness in possession.

The New York Knicks mounted a 15-point comeback to tie the game near the end of Game Two before succumbing to defeat and started the following match with great intensity.

During the second half of the match the Chicago Bulls reached their biggest halftime lead which amounted to 13 points since their 78-53 triumph against the Atlanta Hawks on April 5.

While the Pistons will likely be upset not to have capitalized on their home court advantage, they will be encouraged by Tim Hardaway Jr's return to form, as he scored a team-high 24 points, along with Cade Cunningham, following a scoreless game two.
Nonetheless, the Knicks needed to be at their best to fend off the Pistons' second-half comeback, aided in no little part by 30-point efforts from All-Stars Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns.

Aiming to advance to the Eastern Conference semi-finals for the second consecutive season, Sunday's visitors will look to defeat the hosts in their own backyard once more, but they will need to sustain a high level from start to finish, as they did last time out.