Detroit Pistons look to build off of Monday night’s win.
Fresh off of a strong fourth quarter performance to beat the Nets, the Detroit Pistons will continue their road trip in Boston to take on the Celtics.
Boston, who defeated the Knicks last night in Madison Square Garden, find themselves in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race, sitting in a tie for third place with Atlanta. The Celtics have won six of their last seven and should be in contention in the East for the rest of the season.
The Pistons find themselves in a different place. Detroit is 26-23 on the year, good enough for seventh in the East. They’re only 2.5 games up on the Hornets, who are in ninth. As Head Coach Stan Van Gundy said last month, too often the Pistons look like they are committed to mediocrity. They have been wildly inconsistent this season and have failed to win more than four games in a row. Detroit is 5-5 in their last 10 games.
They might be in the playoffs right now, but the Pistons will need to beat teams like the Celtics if they are going to claim a playoff spot. So far this season, Detroit is 2-1 against Boston, winning their last meeting 99-94 on Jan. 6. Tip off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST.
Biggest Matchup: Reggie Jackson vs. Isaiah Thomas
Any time you have point guards of this caliber who are this important to their offenses, that matchup will be the most important. Neither Thomas nor Jackson is known for their defensive prowess, but more so for the ability to score.
In Detroit’s two wins over Boston this year, Jackson averaged 23.5 points per games while shooting 48 percent from the floor. In the Pistons’ loss to the Celtics earlier this season, Jackson scored 17 points on just 5-14 shooting. He also turned the ball over three times while dishing just two assists.
If Detroit can slow down Thomas, they’ll be able to slow down Boston’s offense. Thomas is the catalyst. He leads the Celtics in points per game, assists per game and field goal attempts per game. The same can be said for Jackson. If Boston can slow him down and get him to cough up the rock, the Celtics will force the Pistons to look elsewhere for offense, which brings me to my x-factor.
X-Factor: Andre Drummond
It seems like when Dre is on, the whole team functions the better. It’s also true that when he’s lost on both ends of the floor, the Pistons are a mess.
When Detroit wins, Drummond averaged over three points more than he does when they lose. He also shoots more efficiently and stays out of foul trouble. All of these are obvious and common sense, but it bears being said. Drummond needs to dominate games like this, where there is no opposing big man that is on Drummond’s level. No disrespect to Kelly Olynyk, Jared Sullinger, or former Piston Amir Johnson, but Drummond outclasses them in almost every way. If Drummond plays up to the level he should, the Pistons should win this game.