Bibby helps Knicks top Pistons, 103-80
Mike Bibby smiles as he walks off the court with Carmelo Anthony after hitting a three-point shot against the Detroit Pistons. (Jan. 7, 2012) Credit: AP
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni decided to begin the Iman Shumpert Era Saturday night by giving the rookie point guard his first NBA start.
Mike Bibby decided to reach back to a different era -- the one when he was a top-notch NBA point guard.
With Shumpert in early foul trouble and Toney Douglas ineffective with a sore right shoulder, Bibby led the Knicks to a blistering second quarter en route to a 103-80 wipeout of the Pistons at a Lions-obsessed Palace of Auburn Hills.
With the Detroit Lions playing their first playoff game since 1999 in New Orleans, the Palace was mostly empty. Those who attended were keeping a close eye on the action -- the action in New Orleans, that is, especially once the Knicks turned the entire second half into extended garbage time.
Bibby, the 13-year veteran and third point guard on the floor for the Knicks Saturday night, scored 16 points -- 14 in the second quarter -- as the Knicks (4-4) won their second road game in two nights.
"He's going to be big for us," said Tyson Chandler, who had 10 points and nine rebounds. "When he's knocking down shots like that, he just stretches the defense and opens it up for other guys."
The other guys: Amar'e Stoudemire scored 22 points in 28 minutes. Carmelo Anthony, playing with a sore lower back/groin/hip area, had 13 points and seven assists in 31 minutes.
"We needed every bit of it," Anthony said. "We came out from the jump from the beginning and jumped on them. Everybody got going."
Shumpert, who replaced Douglas in D'Antoni's lineup in only his fourth NBA game, scored 11 points. Rookie Josh Harrellson had 11 points and seven rebounds. All 13 Knicks played; the only down note was Douglas, who was scoreless in just 5:43 of floor time.
Brandon Knight had 19 for Detroit (2-6).
The Knicks used a 39-18 second quarter that included a 19-1 run to turn a tight game into a much-needed blowout. Bibby hit all four of his three-point attempts in the quarter as the Knicks played their best game since a victory in Sacramento on New Year's Eve.
"Definitely your defense helped," Bibby said. "I felt that we were hitting shots, too, so the momentum was just sticking with us. Things were going good for us."
It was an unlikely quintet that propelled the Knicks. They started the second quarter with a 25-24 lead and a lineup of Stoudemire, Harrellson, Bibby, Bill Walker and Landry Fields.
Detroit took a 30-27 lead when Ben Gordon hit a three-pointer early in the quarter. The game was tied at 32 when Bibby scored his first points on a three. The Knicks never trailed again; they led 64-42 at halftime, 86-57 after three and by as many as 30 in the fourth.
The 19-1 run began with a jumper and dunk by Stoudemire; a reverse layup by Fields followed by a steal from Harrellson and three-pointer by Bibby; a Stoudemire layup and then a Stoudemire steal; an Anthony slam on a back-door feed from Stoudemire; a steal by Fields followed by another Bibby three; a free throw by the Pistons' Greg Monroe, followed by a third Bibby three for a 22-point advantage.
Bibby, who played 15:26, didn't attempt another shot the rest of the game.
"I'm just trying to play basketball," he said. "It's a different system, a system that I like, and it's easy for us to play freely out there."
