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Balanced scoring helps Pistons blowout Raptors

By Mike Davidson

Feb 28, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) points straight up in celebration after making a shot against the Toronto Raptors during the first quarter at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Reggie Jackson (1) points straight up in celebration after making a shot against the Toronto Raptors during the first quarter at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports /
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81. Final. 114. 64. 101

Balanced scoring, solid play from the bench and a huge third quarter propelled the Pistons to a blowout win over the Raptors.

This looked like a game that would go down to the wire as the Pistons and Raptors exchanged runs in the first half and headed to the locker room knotted at 52. Then the Pistons came out and shot 78 percent and outscored the Raptors 37-20 in the third quarter and the game went from a back-and-forth battle to a blowout.

The fact that the Raptors decided to rest Kyle Lowry certainly helped, but the Pistons won’t apologize for that. It’s the Pistons fourth win in a row, and more importantly their fourth straight game looking like  a bonafide playoff contender. A flurry of points by the Raptors in the final few minutes made the score a little more respectable, but this was a rout by the home team.

Here are the grades:

REGGIE JACKSON. A. Reggie played great tonight. His numbers won’t blow you away (19 points and 8 assists to just two turnovers) but he was distributing the ball well and taking good shots throughout the game. It was also great to see him celebrate on the bench when guys like Reggie Bullock and Steve Blake were hitting shots. It’s good to see him developing as a leader.. PG. Pistons

After picking up two fouls while letting DeMar DeRozan score 13 points in the first quarter, KCP clamped down and held DeRozan to just seven points the rest of the game. He played great defense and hit made range jumper after mid range jumper en route to 16 points on 7-10 shooting with five assists.. SG. Pistons. KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL-POPE. B+

B+. Marcus scored 14 points on 5-10 shooting with four assists and four rebounds, and while his stat line doesn’t look overly impressive, he had a nice all around game. He and Tobias Harris got the Pistons going in the second quarter, and he had a few really nice drives. When he wasn’t taking it all the way to the hoop, he was finding the open man for a good look.. SF. Pistons. MARCUS MORRIS

PF. Pistons. TOBIAS HARRIS. B. Tobias had a rough start to the game, picking up two quick fouls and sitting for most of the first quarter. He came out strong in the second quarter and finished the game with 14 points on 5-9 shooting with seven rebounds. He and Marcus Morris are really starting to develop a nice chemistry, and the versatility he provides on both ends of the floor is paying huge dividends for the Pistons.

A. Andre was a monster tonight. He scored 15 points and pulled down 18 rebounds, and held Jonas Valanciunas to just 11 points and five rebounds. He was well on his way to another 20-20 game but the Pistons’ big lead allowed him to sit for most of the fourth quarter. The Raptors’ front court will have nightmares about Andre after this game.. C. Pistons. ANDRE DRUMMOND

B. Baynes did what Baynes does. He scored nine points and grabbed four rebounds in 14 minutes, and was the beneficiary of some nice Steve Blake passes in the fourth quarter. . C. Pistons. ARON BAYNES

B+. This was a tale of two halves for Blake. He looked horrible in the first half, committing four turnovers and looking visibly frustrated on the bench after being taken out. I’m not sure what he had for a halftime snack, but he came back in the second half and knocked down two threes, got into the lane with ease and got wide open layups and dunks for Aron Baynes and wide open threes for Reggie Bullock. This second half performance was more the exception than the rule for Blake, but it’s good to see that he still has some gas left in the tank.. PG. Pistons. STEVE BLAKE

Pistons. DARRUN HILLIARD II. F. Hilliard was really the only Piston who had a bad game tonight. He failed to record any stats in nine minutes, and he was a team worst -22.. SG

SG. Pistons. REGGIE BULLOCK. B. Reggie has made the most of his playing time in the last two games. He played a whopping 26 minutes tonight, and  scored eight points including two three pointers. Play decent defense and hit open shots is really all the Pistons need him to do while Stanley Johnson is out, and he has been delivering.

Pistons. JOEL ANTHONY. Inc. Joel played four minutes of mop up time and didn’t record any stats other than two fouls.. C

B. Harper got his number called early tonight as Tobias Harris went to the bench with foul trouble in the first quarter. He answered the call and then some, hitting two three pointers immediately upon entering the game, sparking an otherwise slow start offensively for the Pistons. He finished with nine points and one rebound in 16 minutes. It was good to see him take advantage of the opportunity tonight.. PF. Pistons. JUSTIN HARPER

A. You have to credit Stan Van Gundy for juggling his rotations while missing two key role players. He is making it work with the likes of Reggie Bullock and Darrun Hilliard playing key minutes off the bench, and while a lot of the credit goes to the starting lineup, he’s done a great job of keeping the team together despite several rough patches over the course of the season. He has the Pistons playing their best basketball in awhile, and they aren’t even at full strength.. Head Coach. Pistons. STAN VAN GUNDY

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