The Detroit Pistons (10-4) sit in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. They continue their road trip with a Friday night matchup against the Indiana Pacers (7-8).
The Detroit Pistons are coming off a hard-fought loss Wednesday night to the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks blocked an NBA season-high 16 shots, yet the game was tied with 56 seconds left before Milwaukee ultimately came out victorious. The Pistons now shift their attention to the Pacers, a team they defeated 114-97 on November 8.
In that game, Andre Drummond recorded a season-high 21 rebounds along with a whopping +28 point differential. Tobias Harris led the scoring with 23, and Reggie Jackson added 18. Also of note, Boban Marjanovic played rotational minutes and scored 9 points, often looking unstoppable down low.
On the other side, the Pacers are coming off a 118-115 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night. They are winners of 2 of 3 after snapping a 4-game losing streak. In the previous game against the Pistons, Indiana big man Myles Turner was held to 8 points in 26 minutes. Al Jefferson had a superb game off the bench with 19 points, and Victor Oladipo had 21 points.
Since their last meeting, Stanley Johnson has re-joined the starting lineup after missing 3 games with a hip injury. Meanwhile, Indiana welcomes back second-year big man Domantas Sabonis from a right calf contusion.
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In order for the Pistons to get back in the win column, they will need to shut down Victor Oladipo and his much-improved shooting. He is averaging over 23 points per game on 44% shooting from three in his first year in Indiana. Last game against Detroit, while he scored 21 points, it took him 21 shots to get there. Limiting his efficiency again will bode well for Detroit’s chances.
The reserve big man matchup will also be something to watch. Marjanovic and Jefferson both had solid offensive outputs, specifically in the 2nd quarter when they were matched up on each other. This begs the question of whether Stan Van Gundy could turn to defensive-minded Eric Moreland instead of Marjanovic. Sabonis’ return up front adds to this equation as well.
Despite Wednesday’s loss, the Pistons still sit in 2nd place in the Eastern Conference. With a tough stretch of games coming up after this one (at Minnesota, vs Cleveland, at Oklahoma City, at Boston), this has the feel of a potential trap game for Detroit. But, although the Pacers are not a .500 team 15 games in, there is no reason to take them lightly.
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Overall, Indiana is full of established veterans who know how to play. Along with Oladipo and Turner, Darren Collison is coming off a 30-point game Wednesday night, and Thaddeus Young and Lance Stephenson have both been around. It will be important not to look ahead to the upcoming schedule and take care of business Friday night.