Pistons notch blowout win over the Hawks, 118-95
The Detroit Pistons (20-24) started their three-game home stand strong, winning big against the red-hot Atlanta Hawks (24-18).
It all starts with defense.
Before the Detroit Pistons started heating up on the offensive end against the Atlanta Hawks, they set the tone by coming out engaged and disciplined defensively, holding the Hawks scoreless on its first five possessions. That effort carried over on offense, too. The Pistons played smart and unselfish basketball, and, thanks to some hot shooting from beyond the arc, led 42-18 at the end of the first quarter and 69-45 at the half–the team’s highest scoring first quarter and first half of the season.
Detroit cruised to victory in the second half, led by Reggie Jackson‘s 26 points and Marcus Morris‘s near triple-double of 14 points, ten rebounds and seven assists.
Paul Millsap led the Hawks with 21 points and 8 rebounds. Dennis Schroder and Kris Humphries both added 13 points.
The Pistons shot 49.5 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range. The team’s hustle, focus and unselfishness bore dividends on the stat sheet, as Detroit outrebounded the Hawks by 28–per ESPN Stats & Info, the highest rebound differential in a game for the Pistons since 1990. The Pistons finished with 27 assists, just four shy of their season high, and all five starters scored at least 13 points.
It was an impressive win for the Pistons after a grueling West Coast road trip. They’ll try to extend their winning streak to three games when they host the Wizards at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
A-. Reggie Jackson led the Pistons in scoring with 26 points, and he did it in a lot of different ways. His floater was on point, he shot 50 percent from 3-point range, and he was his typical aggressive self around the rim. He recorded four assists to three turnovers, and though he took a team-high 20 shots, he wasn’t guilty of the ball stopping or overdribbling that has stalled the offense at points this season. All in all, this was one of the best versions of Reggie we’ve seen all season.. PG. Detroit Pistons. REGGIE JACKSON
B+. <a rel=. SG/SF. Detroit Pistons. REGGIE BULLOCK
MARCUS MORRIS. A. This might have been the best game of the season for Marcus Morris. He was only 1-for-6 from three-point range, but he moved the ball as well as he has all season, and his balanced overall game kept him on triple-double watch until he took a seat for good in the third quarter. He also played solid defense on Paul Millsap, especially in the first half.. SF. Detroit Pistons
TOBIAS HARRIS. B+. It was a three-point party early, and <a rel=. PF. Detroit Pistons
B+. The numbers show a pretty typical night for <a rel=. C. Detroit Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND
ISH SMITH. B. <a rel=. PG. Detroit Pistons
C. <a rel=. SG. Detroit Pistons. DARRUN HILLIARD
STANLEY JOHNSON. B+. <a rel=. SF. Detroit Pistons
B. Baynes played well in 22 minutes off the bench. He scored 12 points on 6-for-8 free throw shooting. Baynes recorded four rebounds and two assists and four personal fouls. He passed the ball well, got good positioning in the paint, set some monstrous screens and made very few mistakes.. C. Detroit Pistons. ARON BAYNES
Detroit Pistons. BOBAN MARJANOVIC. B. The fans wanted <a rel=. C
B. <a rel=. PF/C. Detroit Pistons. HENRY ELLENSON
A. After a long road trip, and with an injury-riddled roster, Stan Van Gundy had his guys ready to go against the Hawks. The Pistons were focused and energetic from the get-go, and SVG deserves some credit for that.. Head Coach. Detroit Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY