Knicks must overcome Pistons’ desperation and grab control of series

DETROIT — Look, we’ve all seen enough playoff games to know it’s not as easy as blinking your eyes or snapping your fingers or taking a well-placed fist to a jukebox like Arthur Fonzarelli, and magically Frankie Avalon starts singing “Venus” at Arnold’s Drive-In. You can’t just flip a switch. Certainly not on the road.

The Pistons are too good for that. They are too tough for that. Maybe some think they’re playing with the house’s money now that they’ve handed back the home-court advantage to the Knicks after Thursday’s 118-116 New York victory in Game 3. They do not feel that way.

Maybe some believe this is a damned show. The Pistons don’t believe that. They think it’s a damned fight. They will be the more desperate team Sunday afternoon, just past 1 o’clock, when Game 4 of this best-of-seven Eastern Conference first-round series resumes.

And if you happen to notice that the Knicks went from being 1.5-point favorites Thursday to two-point underdogs Sunday despite the same lineups, in the same arena, before the same rabid fans, that’s all you need to know.