Detroit Pistons head coach Monty Williams said he was calm about the 113-111 loss to the New York Knicks before storming out of his press conference Monday night.
The Pistons were up 111-110 when New York’s Donte DiVincenzo handed the ball to Ausar Thompson. As the rookie attempted to dribble the ball down the court, DiVincenzo lunged at his legs, causing him to trip and fall.
Instead of blowing the whistle after clear contact, the referees allowed play to continue while 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.
“Worst decision of the season,” Williams said of the final sequence to open his press. ‘No call. And that’s enough. We did it the right way, we called the league, we sent clips. We are tired of hearing the same things over and over again.
“We had a chance to win the game and the guy went for Ausar’s legs. And there was a refusal, that’s an abomination. You can’t 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 furious about a last-second foul on Pistons power forward Ausar Thompson.
‘I’m tired of talking about it. I’m tired of our guys asking me, ‘What else can we do, coach?’ That situation is Exhibit A of what we have been facing all season. And that’s enough. You can’t throw yourself at a guy’s legs in a big game like that and there’s no decision.
‘It’s ridiculous and we’re tired of it. We just want a fair game to be played, period. And I have nothing else to say. “We want a fair game and that wasn’t fair, I’m done.”
In a game that unfortunately got out of hand, the Pistons recovered thanks to 32 points, five rebounds and eight assists from Cade Cunningham. Jaden Ivey and Quentin Grimes each scored 14 points, while Simone Fontecchio and Jalen Duren scored 12 and 11, respectively.
Meanwhile, the same players involved in the Knicks’ final sequence led them in scoring. Brunson, Hart and DiVincenzo had solid swings with 35, 23 and 21 points, respectively. Brunson also built on 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 three-pointers and 76.2 percent of their charity points. New York also outrebounded the young Pistons, 44-42, and had more assists with 31 to Detroit’s 25.
Williams called the no-decision the “absolute worst call of the season” as Pistons move to 8-49
With the win, the Knicks improve to a 35-23 record and sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
Earlier this month, the Knicks were on the opposite side of the equation and had a game taken away due to questionable officiating.
In a game against the Houston Rockets, Brunson contested an Aaron Holiday hail attempt from three. With the game tied at 103, Holiday went to the line with zero on the clock and won the game, 103-105, for Houston.
After the game, head referee Ed Malloy told the media that there should have been no foul on the play. The NBA’s latest two-minute report also doubled down on the referee’s call that caused New York to win the game.
The Knicks are now 35-23 this season, 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.