Detroit Pistons play strong but fall short against the Golden State Warriors

Oct 17, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (34) and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) celebrates during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 17, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (34) and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) celebrates during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Pistons put up a great effort, but lost to the Golden State Warriors 119-113 on a night where Kentavious Caldwell-Pope looked like a star.

The Detroit Pistons battled hard all night, but fell just short, losing to the Golden State Warriors 119-113.  The Pistons’ loss extends their losing streak to five games and drops them to 14-18 on the season.

The loss comes on a night when the Pistons changed up their starting lineup.  Jon Leuer replaced Tobias Harris as a starter and played a solid game in his place.  The move to the bench didn’t seem to affect Harris, who scored a team-high 26 points in the loss.

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As good as Harris was, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was even better.  Caldwell-Pope played outstanding defense while still managing to be efficient offensively.  Caldwell-Pope’s defensive importance was obvious late in the game, when the Splash Brothers, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, both found themselves being defended by Reggie Jackson.

Curry and Thompson both made critical three-pointers at the end of the game when they had Jackson defending them, Curry being defended by Jackson after an offensive rebound.  The Pistons couldn’t match the Warriors late-game shooting, and that was the ultimate difference in the game.

Despite the loss, the Pistons’ performance tonight was encouraging.  They played their best basketball in two or more weeks, and probably would have beaten anyone but the league-best Warriors tonight.  If they can capitalize on tonight’s positive performance, Pistons fans have reason to be optimistic for the first time in weeks.

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