Pistons start strong, fizzle to Grizzles 105-84
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Zach Randolph had 21 points and 14 rebounds, Rudy Gay added 17 points, and the Memphis Grizzlies used a third-quarter spurt to beat the Detroit Pistons 105-84 on Wednesday night.
Mike Conley and Darrell Arthur added 14 apiece for Memphis, which won its second straight and snapped Detroit's five-game road winning streak in the series.
Rodney Stuckey led the Pistons with 17 points, 13 in the first quarter, while Richard Hamilton had 12 before being ejected late in the third quarter. Charlie Villanueva finished with 11 points, while Ben Gordon and Will Bynum scored 10 apiece.
Memphis outscored Detroit 33-18 in the third, then added 10 unanswered points to open the fourth, building the advantage to 22.
The Grizzlies outscored the Pistons 58-34 in the second half, eventually holding a 25-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Stuckey got the Pistons off to a good start with all of his 13 first-half points in the opening quarter. But Detroit couldn't maintain the advantage, and the game settled into an exchange of leads. There were 10 in the first half.
Villanueva made all but one of his six shots for his 11 points, and Detroit eventually carried a 50-47 lead into the locker room despite Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince going a combined 1 of 9 from the field.
The shooting inaccuracy spread to the rest of the Pistons, as Detroit missed its first eight shots of the second half before a 3-pointer from Hamilton.
Memphis, which leads the league in turnovers forced, turned up the defense after halftime. Detroit committed a handful of miscues that led to fast-break baskets, stretching the Grizzlies' lead to double digits. Meanwhile, the Pistons connected on 5-of-19 shots in the quarter.
The frustration showed with 51 seconds left in the period as Hamilton earned his second technical and was tossed. That enraged Pistons coach John Kuester, who earned another tech. By the time Gay finished shooting the technical free throws, the lead had expanded to 80-66, helping the Grizzlies carry an 80-68 lead into the fourth.
NOTES: The game was the 200th in Lionel Hollins' coaching career, all coming in three stints with the Grizzlies. The Pistons are winless in the second game of back-to-backs (0-4). The Grizzlies had not won a home game against Detroit since Dec. 11, 2004. The Grizzlies' bench set a season high for scoring with 41 points. The previous mark was last Saturday, 35 against the Miami Heat.
Updated November 24, 2010