Detroit Pistons head coach Monty Williams said his peace about their 113-111 loss to the New York Knicks before storming out of his press conference on Monday night.
The Pistons were up 111-110 when New York’s Donte DiVincenzo turned the ball over to Ausar Thompson. As the rookie tried to dribble the ball across the court, DiVincenzo dove into his legs, causing him to trip and fall.
Rather than blowing the whistle upon the clear contact, the officials allowed play to continue as Jalen Brunson retained possession for the Knicks. Brunson then found Josh Hart, who secured a three-point play to win the game for New York.
‘The absolute worst call of the season,’ Williams said of the final sequence to open his presser. ‘No call. And enough’s enough. We’ve done it the right way, we’ve called the league, we’ve sent in clips. We’re sick of hearing the same stuff over and over again.
‘We had a chance to win the game, and the guy dove into Ausar’s legs. And there was a no-call- that’s an abomination. You cannot miss that in an NBA game, period.’
Monty Williams walked out of his postgame press conference after a close loss to the Knicks
Williams was fuming over a last-second no-call on Pistons power forward Ausar Thompson
‘I’m tired of talking about it. I’m tired of our guys asking me ‘What more can we do, coach?’ That situation is exhibit A of what we’ve been dealing with all season long. And enough’s enough. You cannot dive into a guy’s legs in a big-time game like that and there be a no-call.’
‘It’s ridiculous and we’re tired of it. We just want a fair game called, period. And I got nothing else to say. We want a fair game, and that was not fair, I’m done.’
In a game that unfortunately slipped out of their hands, the Pistons rallied behind Cade Cunningham’s 32 points, five rebounds, and eight assists. Jaden Ivey and Quentin Grimes each tallied 14 points, while Simone Fontecchio and Jalen Duren scored 12 and 11, respectively.
Meanwhile, the same players involved in the closing sequence for the Knicks led them in scoring. Brunson, Hart, and DiVincenzo had solid shifts with 35, 23, and 21 points, respectively. Brunson also parlayed his scoring with 12 rebounds to secure a double-double.
The Pistons showed more efficiency, shooting 48.1 percent from the field, 46.7 percent from three, and 80.8 percent from the free throw line in their losing effort.
On the other hand, the Knicks made 44.6 percent of their field goals, 38.5 percent of their threes, and 76.2 percent of their charity points. New York also outrebounded the young Pistons, 44-42, and tallied more assists with 31 to Detroit’s 25.
Williams dubbed the no-call the ‘absolute worst call of the season’ as the Pistons move to 8-49
With the win, the Knicks improve to a 35-23 record and sit fourth in the Eastern Conference
Earlier this month, the Knicks were on the opposite side of the equation and had a game taken from them by questionable officiating.
In a game against the Houston Rockets, Brunson contested a hail Marry attempt by Aaron Holiday from three. With the game tied at 103, Holiday went to the stripe with zero on the clock and won the game, 103-105, for Houston.
Following the game, head official Ed Malloy told the media that there should not have been a foul on the play. The NBA’s last two-minute report also doubled down on the officiating call that caused New York the game.
The Knicks are now 35-23 this season, sitting fourth in the Eastern Conference.
Meanwhile, the Pistons remain at the bottom of the conference with an 8-49 record, the worst in the NBA.
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