The New York Knicks edged the Detroit Pistons 113-111 on Monday night at Madison Square Garden, but the game was marred by a controversial no-call in the final seconds that left Pistons coach Monty Williams fuming.
The Pistons had a one-point lead with 22 seconds left when Knicks guard Donte DiVincenzo dove for a loose ball and collided with Pistons rookie Ausur Thompson’s legs, causing him to lose control of the ball. The referees did not blow the whistle, and the Knicks regained possession and found Josh Hart for the go-ahead layup (plus the foul) with 2.8 seconds remaining.
The ending of the Knicks and Pistons game.
CHAOS pic.twitter.com/rIEQ05sOTv
— NBA Retweet (@RTNBA) February 27, 2024
Pistons head coach Monty Williams blasted the officials in a fiery post-game press conference.
“The absolute worst call of the season,” Williams said. “We’re sick of hearing the same stuff over and over again. We had a chance to win the game and a guy dove into Ausur’s legs and there was a no-call. That’s an abomination. You cannot miss that in an NBA game. Period.”
Williams also said that his team had been dealing with officiating issues all season long and that they just wanted a fair game.
“That situation is Exhibit A to what we’ve been dealing with all season long and enough’s enough,” Williams said. “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’ve got nothing else to say. We want a fair game and that was not fair. I’m done.”
Monty Williams was upset after loss to Knicks and walked out of his postgame press conference pic.twitter.com/DJ51SESSrA
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) February 27, 2024
The Pistons fell to 8-49 with the loss, while the Knicks improved to 35-23 and moved up to fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
Brunson led the Knicks with 35 points and 12 assists, while Hart added 23 and DiVincenzo 21 points. Cunningham had 32 points, five rebounds and eight assists for the Pistons.
