Pistons fall short in comeback effort vs. Celtics
93. 64. 99. 18. Final
The Pistons had a tough night taking care of the ball and shooting, but came alive in the fourth quarter after being down by as much as 16. They were down by two with under 30 seconds left, but the game was put out of reach with just over 10 seconds due to a clutch fade away jumper from former Piston, Jonas Jerebko.
PG. Pistons. REGGIE JACKSON. C. Reggie really did not look like the All-Star caliber guard he’s been playing like as of late. Steve Blake got more minutes than usual and was the better point guard for the team. He finished with only one assist, and Saturday’s game was one of the rare off games he’ll have all season. His long three pointer in the waning minute of the game kept Detroit in the game, but it wasn’t enough.
SG. Pistons. KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL-POPE. C-. KCP showed a lot of hustle, including stealing an inbound pass in first quarter. But in a game where the team coughed up too many turnovers, he led the way. He struggled to take care of the basketball and had errant passes to boot, turning the ball over a team-high five times.
B. Stanley missed his first four shots, and looked uncomfortable and hesitant on all of his misses. He sparked little rallies in the fourth quarter with his improved execution on both sides of the ball with a three-pointer and an easy layup off a steal. His improvement in the fourth quarter was a large part of the comeback.. SF. Pistons. STANLEY JOHNSON
Morris started off hot coming off of his great night against the Hawks, but started to cool off once the second quarter began. He did turn out a decent game, scoring behind Drummond with 16 points, shooting 50 percent from the field.. SF. Pistons. MARCUS MORRIS. B+
A-. Andre spent the night cleaning up the glass and converting on his own misses for second chance points. A Hack-a-Drummond strategy in first quarter doesn’t work, as he made both free throws. He couldn’t keep free throw shooting prowess up, but continued to out hustle and out rebound the opposition. He was a rebound away from reaching a double-double in the first half, scoring 17 before the break, finishing the game with 22 points and 22 rebounds .. C. Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND
Pistons. ARON BAYNES. B. Baynes played 10 minutes, making his only field goal attempt and pulling down four rebounds.. C
C. Tolliver sunk his first three thanks to a Stanley Johnson hustle play, which found him wide open for the trey. That was his only make on the night, missing his four other shots.. PF. Pistons. ANTHONY TOLLIVER
Pistons. ERSAN ILYASOVA. B-. Ilyasova contributed on the glass, racking up seven boards. He didn’t shoot particularly well, scoring nine points on 3-of-9 shooting.. PF
Pistons. STEVE BLAKE. B+. Coast-to-coast layup to end the first quarter beating the buzzer. Blake had two steals in two straight possessions in the second quarter, the latter leading to an Andre Drummond and-one dunk. Blake facilitated the offense well to keep the Pistons in the game (five assists), playing much better than Reggie Jackson, who couldn’t find his rhythm on the night.. PG
It’s tough to beat a team twice in a two week period, especially when you’re so evenly matched. The Pistons were down by just five with 36 seconds left. His drawn up plays kept the Pistons in the game when it seemed like they were out of it. This year, this Piston squad doesn’t lie down and take losses.. Head Coach. Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY. B+