Detroit Pistons fall 105-98 to Atlanta Hawks despite late charge

Despite a fourth quarter fightback the Detroit Pistons have fallen short against the Atlanta Hawks on the road 105-98.

The Detroit Pistons trailed by as much as 17 points throughout the game, but were able to slowly chip away at the lead in the final quarter, trimming it back to just 5 points with three minutes to play.

More from PistonPowered

However, through mostly the Pistons poor execution down the stretch the Atlanta Hawks were able to hang on for a 7 point win.

It was an incredibly sloppy contest from both teams, as neither side shot over 44 per cent from the field and they combined for 17 of 56 from the three point line as well as committing 24 turnovers.

The Pistons struggled to contain Paul Millsap, who had 26 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, while Dwight Howard came in handy on the glass, pulling down 15 rebounds with 5 of them coming on the offensive end.

All five starters managed to hit double-digits in scoring, a serious improvement over the production from the starting unit recently.

Jon Leuer led the team in scoring with 22 and Reggie Jackson had one of his best games of the season as he finished with 20 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists.

Unfortunately, with Marcus Morris due to injury the bench lacked firepower, combining for just 15 points compared to the 38 points Atlanta received off the bench.

B+. Reggie Jackson started off poorly against the Hawks, turning the ball over and taking ill-advised shots. However, he eventually found his rhythm and finished the game with 20 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists. He was also the only starter to have a positive plus/minus (+1).. PG. Detroit Pistons. REGGIE JACKSON

KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL-POPE. D+. <a rel=. SG. Detroit Pistons

TOBIAS HARRIS. C-. <a rel=. PF. Detroit Pistons

Jon Leuer was the only player who shot over 50 per cent from the field for the Pistons on a night where both teams struggled to make shots. He had a team-high 22 points, while also contributing 6 rebounds and 2 steals.. PF. Detroit Pistons. JON LEUER. A-

<a rel=. C. Detroit Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND. C+

C-. <a rel=. PG. Detroit Pistons. ISH SMITH

D. <a rel=. SF. Detroit Pistons. STANLEY JOHNSON

D+. <a rel=. C. Detroit Pistons. ARON BAYNES

Head Coach. Detroit Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY. C. Stan Van Gundy deserves some of the credit for the Pistons fourth quarter fightback, as he was able to get the team to kick into gear despite being mostly lifeless for the first three quarters. However, his use of an eight-man rotation was questionable as the bulk of the work was left up to the starters, while the Pistons’ bench was dominated by the Hawks’ reserves.

Home/Pistons News