The Detroit Pistons are coming off a rough 102-89 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday. The Pistons are currently 8th in the Eastern conference at 26-30 as they return home tonight to face the Dallas Mavericks, who are currently 11th in the Western conference with a 22-33 record.
Here’s a brief look at how both teams have performed this season. The Detroit Pistons offensive rating is tied for 22nd in the league at 103.8 while their defensive rating is tied for 11th at 105.2. Conversely, the Dallas Mavericks are tied for 17th in defensive rating at 106.2 and are 19th in offensive rating at 104.4.
Heading into this game, the Pistons need to take advantage of the Mavericks poor ability to rebound the ball. Dallas is last in the NBA in rebounding percentage at 46 percent while the Pistons rank sixth in the league at 51 percent.
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Andre Drummond has had great success rebounding against Dallas in their last few meetings including his game earlier this year in which he had 17 rebounds. If the Pistons are going to be successful, they will need Drummond to protect the paint and control the glass.
Furthermore, the Pistons will need to defend the Mavs top offensive options in Wesley Matthews and Harrison Barnes. Matthews has heated up lately after starting slow this year as he’s averaged 18 points a game on 49 percent shooting from the field in his last 10 games. Barnes has had a solid all around season scoring 20 points a game on 48 percent shooting from the field.
These games vs non playoff teams are the games that the Pistons can’t afford to lose. Unfortunately, the Pistons have struggled mightily with consistency this season, losing to many teams they shouldn’t be.
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They need to beat the struggling teams to keep themselves in playoff contention with Charlotte, Milwaukee, and Miami within two games of the 8th seed. The game is at the Palace of Auburn Hills and tips off at 7:30.