Detroit Pistons Fail to Overcome First Quarter Deficit at Orlando

     The Detroit Pistons fell again last night to the Orlando Magic, 110-103. The Magic came out firing on all cylinders in the first quarter, hitting their first five triples. They rode that hot streak to a 40 point quarter and a 17 point lead over Detroit.

     Dwight Howard managed to stay on the floor much longer than his 17 minute stint on Tuesday, playing 38 minutes before fouling out late in the fourth quarter. He was also much more productive with 22 points, 12 rebounds, and two blocks.

     Charlie Villanueva had his breakout performance as a Piston, scoring 28 points, 22 of which came in the fourth, on 11-17 shooting. He looked unstoppable in the fourth, making highly contested shots, and drawing fouls when he missed, even drawing the sixth foul on Howard. His effort in the fourth is what kept the Pistons within fighting distance of Orlando. Every game Villanueva seems to get more and more comfortable, which is an excellent sign for the Pistons going forward.

     Ben Gordon struggled shooting for most of the game, at one point going 2-11 from the field. He did start to turn things around in the third quarter but never really got on track. He did get to the line more than any other Piston at 11 attempts.

     Missed free throws really hurt the Pistons in this one with the team total at 23-37. Those are points that you just can't leave on the court against a team as good as Orlando.

     Jonas Jerebko and Austin Daye again shared the vacancy that has been left with Tayshaun Prince and Richard Hamilton out. They both put in very promising games. Jerebko was active all night on the defensive end, getting in lanes for steals and causing headaches for Orlando shooters with two blocked shots.

     Daye had his best performance yet, with 11 points, five rebounds, one block, and one steal, in only 18 minutes. He showed poise taking shots when open and passing when covered. He flashed his great shooting touch draining a three as well as a long two. Most of his points though came in the first half in transition.

     Rodney Stuckey topped 20 points again but battled with foul trouble early, which kept him off the court longer than Kuester was probably happy with. He is still not getting the benefit of the doubt calls that stars get in the paint, only managing to get to the line once. For example on one play Stuckey took it to the paint and pulled up for a shot only to be swatted with both hands by Howard who clearly made contact with Rodney's arms. The longer he is in the league and the more he draws that contact, the more often calls will go his way.

     Chris Wilcox appears to be on a short leash after dismal performances in the past few games. He was only able to stay on the floor for nine minutes before racking up two quick fouls. It seems Kuester is more comfortable playing Jason Maxiell extended time, giving him 21 minutes which he turned into five points and four rebounds. He played most of those minutes at the center position alongside Jerebko at the four and Daye at the three.

     The last two games have seen the Pistons give up 40 points or more in a single quarter. If the Pistons hope to make the playoffs this year they are going to have to find a way to stay focused on the defensive end. This might get easier with the return of Hamilton and Prince to the starting line-up. They are expected to return for the Sunday matinée against Philadelphia.

Pistons-Magic Pre-game Part Deux

     Just three days ago the Detroit Pistons handed the Orlando Magic their first loss of the season. They look to hand them their second tonight.
    
     On Tuesday, the game turned into a defensive slug fest that saw Will Bynum leave the game in the second half after getting poked in the eye. He later returned to finish the clinic he started earlier in the game.

     In that game Orlando shot a season high 35 three point attempts and made only ten. I don't expect them to hoist that many tonight, but I will not be surprised if they manage to make more than ten triples.

     The Pistons are again going to be without Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince. That means Jonas Jerebko and Ben Gordon will get the start for the third game in a row. Gordon has played extremely well in place of Rip, averaging 26 points per game while playing upwards of 40 minutes a night.

     Jerebko his having himself a very nice showing for a rookie as well. His first two assignments were to guard Vince Carter and Hedo Turkoglu, not an easy task for even salty veterans. He did an exellent job on both of them, holding Carter to 15 points on 6-16 shooting and Turkoglu to 16 points on 5-11 shooting. Turkoglu also had seven boards and six assists, so he was able to still produce but nevertheless Jerebko has more than made his case for playing even when Prince comes back.

     Detroit was able to negate Orlando's big men by consistently getting their guards to draw fouls in the paint. Look for Detroit to try that again tonight, but also look for them to try and get more than six three point attempts.

     Pace shouldn't be to big of a factor to much in this game as both teams are rested and can play up-tempo run-and-gun or grind-it-out defensive basketball. I expect Detroit to try and keep the pace slower and emphasize defense again as they have been for the past few games. Orlando might be looking to try and push the ball up the court and take a lot of early threes, in an attempt to out score what might be an offensively thin Pistons team with two of its starters out.

     This should be another exciting match-up, with Orlando seeking revenge for what Dwight Howard has called "A Really Frustrating Night!!"

Detroit-Orlando: Pistons Stun Magic

     The Detroit Pistons live inside the Orlando Magics head. This was very apparent in Detroit's 85-80 win on Tuesday night at the Palace, and no Piston deserves more credit for this win than Will Bynum.
  
     Bynum finished with 20 points, on 7-15 shooting, along with 3 rebounds. Bynum took a "Three Stooges" poke to the left eye from Marcin Gortat halfway through the fourth, which left him gripping his face as he was led to the trainers room.
  
     He wasn't gone long though, and made his presence felt immediately when he returned. He took the ball right at Dwight Howard, showing no fear or memory of what happened last time he drove to the paint. He missed the lay-up but drew the sixth foul on Howard.
  
      Bruised and battered, Bynum showed Detroit that rough and tumble basketball hasn't left with the changing faces. Even without Bynum's bloodshot eye this game was very physical.
  
     At one point Rodney Stuckey fouled Howard who came up gripping his right shoulder and had a few words to say to Stuckey. A few minutes later Bynum was driving to the hoop and Jameer Nelson all but tackled him to the ground, which left Bynum grabbing his shoulder. It's hard not to see that foul as retaliatory.

     Stuckey and Ben Gordon also had great games. Stuckey almost posted a double-double with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Gordon put down 23 points and was a perfect 11-11 from the line.

     Gordon had a little back and forth with JJ Redick during the third. Redick got called for a tech after complaining loudly about his foul on Gordon. This seemed to light a fire under Redick, leading him to show some nice ball handling skills as he created his own shot and drained a long deuce. That wasn't the end as Gordon came right back at him and drove him to the paint then proceeded to drop a high bank shot over Redick's outstretched arms.

     Charlie Villanueva seems to be acclimating slowly but is making progress. He scored 12 points and eight rebounds but did it on 3-11 shooting and missed both of his three point attempts. His improvement is going to be a big key to the success of this team.

     Kwame Brown and Ben Wallace did an excellent job keeping Howard and Gortat in check. This was a very welcome sight as the Pistons front court has allowed some very high numbers to opponents big men. Actually Orlando's centers only managed 12 points, 12 rebounds, and four blocks combined.

     This was the first of back to back games for the Pistons as they travel to Toronto to face the Raptors on Wednesday. They will again be without Richard Hamilton and possibly Tayshaun Prince.

Pistons-Magic Pre-game

Here's a pre-game interview with Scott Perry, Pistons Vice President of Basketball Operations.

He's right when he says our success depended on being able to handle D-Howitzer without having to revert to the double-team. Thats not going to be the case this year as Kuester has said it will be defense by committee. I expect to see big Ben and Kwame together tonight, which might come at the expense of Chris Wilcox and possibly Charlie V.

Expect Vince Carter to see heavy doses of Rodney Stuckey and Tayshaun Prince with Richard Hamilton sidelined because of a lingering ankle sprain.

Jameer Nelson also bears some watching as he can put up some points and has tons of options to dish off to. Little Ben will probably get the start again tonight, and for once he wont have to guard a taller player as Nelson measures in at six foot nothing.

If the Pistons can't find a way to break their third quarter slump this could turn ugly in the second half. It should be an exciting game, with some great dunk highlights at least.


UPDATE:    Tayshaun Prince is out for the game, replaced by Jonas Jerebko in the starting line-up. It's the first start for the rookie from Sweden.