Knicks Beat Pistons 111-97 for First Win After 0-3 Start as Defending Champions The New York Knicks earned their first win of the season, defeating the Detroit Pistons 111-97 at Madison Square Garden to improve to 1-3 after opening their title defense with three straight losses. The New York Knicks finally broke through. After opening their title defense with three consecutive losses, the defending champions defeated the Detroit Pistons 111-97 on Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden to improve to 1-3 on the season. The win was New York's first since clinching the championship in Game 5 of the NBA Finals last year. It ended weeks of growing frustration and a stretch of poor play that had raised questions about the team's readiness to defend its crown. The Knicks had started 0-3, making them the first defending champion to lose their first three games since the 2011-12 Dallas Mavericks.Historic 0-3 Start Plagues KnicksOnly one defending champion has ever started 0-4, and that has not happened in 57 years, since the 1969-70 Celtics. Coach Mike Brown summed up the early-season struggles bluntly before the game. He said, our crap stinks. It does.Tuesday night, particularly with how the Knicks defended, represented a needed change. New York trailed by 13 points heading into the second quarter after another sluggish start. Detroit shot 60.9 percent from the field in the opening period and scored 38 points. Paul Reed, of all people, was hurting the Knicks and had 13 points early.The Knicks had given up 40 points in the fourth quarter of their loss to the Orlando Magic on Sunday, so the slow start was a continuation of a troubling trend. But this time, New York responded. The defense tightened, and the offense finally found rhythm. The Knicks imposed themselves on a Pistons team that came in undefeated at 3-0 but was shorthanded without the injured Jalen Duren and Isaiah Joe.A year ago, Detroit swept the three regular-season matchups against New York by a combined 84 points. This time, the Knicks landed the first blow in what became a chippy evening at the Garden. Through the first three games, New York had the league's worst offense despite returning the same championship starting lineup. After averaging 115.8 points per game in the playoffs last season, the Knicks were scoring just 101.7 points per game.Struggles Plague New York OffenseJalen Brunson had struggled badly, shooting 39 percent from the field, 27 percent from three and 70 percent from the free throw line. He averaged 22.7 points on 21.3 shot attempts per game, and he made just 13 of 30 shots in the paint, a rate of 43 percent at point-blank range. Karl-Anthony Towns had played well aside from persistent foul trouble. But OG Anunoby struggled from the field and picked up too many fouls.Mikal Bridges was arguably the worst starter in the league, scoring ten total points in 90 minutes and missing all ten of his three-point attempts. Detroit had picked up where it left off last regular season. The Pistons won their first three games against Eastern Conference playoff hopefuls, maintaining their defensive identity while Duncan Robinson averaged 19.7 points on 54 percent three-point shooting. John Collins fit in seamlessly with 15.0 points and 7.7 rebounds per game.Even with limited run from All-NBA center Jalen Duren and All-Defensive wing Ausar Thompson, Detroit had been dominant. A win over the struggling champions would have been another statement. Instead, the Knicks woke up after that sleepy first quarter. They turned a 13-point deficit into a convincing 14-point victory, getting back in the win column and snapping the hangover talk that had followed them since the championship celebration.Defensive Turnaround Ends Pistons StreakDetroit fell to 3-0 on the season with the loss, while New York improved to 1-3. The Pistons remain a formidable defensive team, but on this night, the defending champions looked more like themselves. It was a defensive gem that got the Knicks off the schneid.For a team that had heard endless questions about its 0-3 start, the win was an air freshener of sorts, and a reminder that the core that won it all last spring is still intact.