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Pistons fall to Kings 100-94 after poor final quarter
The Detroit Pistons have put together an all-time fourth quarter collapse to lose 94-100 to the Sacramento Kings.
Despite controlling the majority of the game the Detroit Pistons were outscored 32-17 in the final quarter and were unable to match the Sacramento Kings’ big shots down the stretch.
Only two days after a double-overtime win in Portland, the Pistons seemed to run out of steam as the game was on the line, with a number of awful offensive possessions giving Sacramento the chance to steal a victory.
Clutch threes from Garrett Temple and DeMarcus Cousins nailed the coffin shut for the Pistons, however it was what the Kings did with Cousins off the floor that setup the comeback.
Former-Piston Anthony Tolliver turned back the clock as he dropped 17 points, while Kosta Koufos (12 points, 8 rebounds) was tremendous as Cousins sat for a lengthy stretch of the fourth quarter due to foul trouble.
By the end of the game the Kings were superior in almost every team statistic.
The Kings led the Pistons in field goal percentage, three-point percentage, free throw percentage, assists and rebounds.
The only categories where the Pistons led the Kings were in steals and blocks, thanks largely to Andre Drummond.
Drummond was by far the Pistons best despite relatively low and misleading point and rebound totals.
He finished the game with just 9 points and 12 rebounds, but also added 3 steals and a career-high 7 blocks.
Reggie Jackson
PG, Detroit Pistons
B-Reggie Jackson was solid for most of the night, but became stagnant offensively down the stretch which helped the Kings run away the game. He finished with 19 points and shot 60 per cent from three, however he also had just 3 assists while turning the ball over 4 times.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
SG, Detroit Pistons
A-Kentavious Caldwell-Pope continued to show why he deserves to be the $20 million man. He had 21 points, including shooting 6 of 8 from three (one of his misses was a heave from half-court) while also contributing 5 rebounds. Caldwell-Pope was also the only starter to finish the game without a negative plus/minus (0).
Marcus Morris
SF, Detroit Pistons
DMarcus Morris had an ineffective night out against the Kings. He finished with 9 points on horrendous shooting from both the field (33.3 per cent) and from deep (20 per cent). He also spent much of the night in foul trouble.
Tobias Harris
PF, Detroit Pistons
B+Tobias Harris continued his solid run of form since being benched by Stan Van Gundy. He provided fire power in the form of 18 points and his jumper looked incredibly smooth.
Andre Drummond
C, Detroit Pistons
AAndre Drummond was nothing short of superb against the Kings. Only two days removed from playing 51 minutes in the Pistons’ double-overtime win against Portland he managed to come away with 3 steals and career-high 7 blocks, to go with 9 points and 12 rebounds. Drummond was also inside DeMarcus Cousins’ head for most of the night, frustrating him to the point where it seemed Cousins may end up doing something to result in being ejected. The only downside of his performance was a woeful night from the charity stripe where he went 1 of 6.
Ish Smith
PG, Detroit Pistons
D+Ish Smith was part of the bench crew that capitalised on DeMacrus Cousins going to the bench early on in the game and helped the Pistons build a double-digit lead. However, in the second-half the wheels fell off and he finished the game with just 6 points and no assists.
Stanley Johnson
SF, Detroit Pistons
D+Stanley Johnson played the most minutes of any bench player for the Pistons (22) and scored just 2 points on 1 of 6 shooting. However, his 3 steals were very handy and he was at home on the defensive end.
Henry Ellenson
PF/C, Detroit Pistons
D+Henry Ellenson finally got some meaningful playing time as an NBA player and looked overwhelmed by the situation for much of his 7 minutes. He completely missed everything on a wide open corner three and looked lost on defence, however he still managed to contribute 2 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists.
Boban Marjanovic
C, Detroit Pistons
C+Boban Marjanovic was used as the first centre off the bench against the Kings after playing just 0.2 of a second against Portland. It wasn’t anywhere near his breakout 15 point, 19 rebound game but he again showed signs that he could be a dominant player off the bench. He had 8 points and 4 rebounds and caused havoc for the Kings’ bench unit.
Aron Baynes
C, Detroit Pistons
FAron Baynes was brought in for a 6 minute stretch in the fourth quarter and had little to no impact. He had no points and 2 rebounds while also managing to pick up 3 fouls.
Stan Van Gundy
Head Coach, Detroit Pistons
B-Stan Van Gundy’s coaching was close to flawless up until halftime. The Pistons looked incredible on both ends of the floor and it appeared that the home team was in danger of being blown out. Van Gundy, who doesn’t usually tinker with his rotations too much, looked to guys like Henry Ellenson and Boban Marjanovic to play a role in the first half, however he moves away from this after the break. The team’s offensive play calling also completely fell apart in the final few minutes of the game.
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