Detroit Pistons Have Held 2 Straight Opponents Under 100 Points

In their first edition of NBA Cup action, the Detroit Pistons held their opponents, the Brooklyn Nets, under 100 points for the second consecutive game in what turned out to be a 110-94 win for the Motown hoopers. 

By this point, Detroit has become comfortable with the fact that they’ll be bucking modern trends on most nights. In fact, Pistons head coach J.B. Bickerstaff has frequently discussed how the squad needs to lean into their identity, so the team should be used to going against the grain. 

On Friday night, that is what the Pistons had to do as they fell into another early double-digit deficit before fighting their way back through defensive intensity and turnover production. By the final buzzer, the Pistons had forced the Nets into committing twice as many turnovers (24 to 12) in what unfolded as a comfortable 16-point win for the visiting squad. 

Working without Jalen Duren for the fourth straight contest, the 5-1 Pistons elected Paul Reed to battle down low in the paint against Brooklyn. But after B-Ball Paul’s 12-point, four-rebound performance, the veteran big man took to X to express his frustration after the game. 

As a whole, the Pistons were outrebounded by a 50-41 margin, which is atypical but has been happening more frequently during Duren’s absence. Despite the Nets’ edge on the boards, Detroit significantly ratcheted up their on-ball pressure after the first quarter and held Brooklyn to a grand total of 38 points for the second and third quarters combined. 

”I think we’re figuring it out now,” Bickerstaff said of the Pistons defense. “It takes a little bit of time to get the system down and kind of get everybody back on the same page, what everybody’s roles or responsibilities are on that end of the floor. But they guys have been committed to it, and they’re working at it. We’ve made some mistakes, but we also made some huge gains.”

From a team-wide perspective, four different Pistons all snagged at least two steals in last night’s win: Ausar Thompson, Javonte Green, Duncan Robinson and Ron Holland II. But to further illustrate how effective Detroit’s defense was, the Nets finished the game shooting just 30% from three-point range and 40% from the field overall, so the Pistons were able to disrupt the vast majority of Brooklyn’s shooting looks. 

During the second half, Holland was particularly active as he showcased his two-way ability with 12 points in the third quarter and a pair of triples to his credit. Holland ended up with 18 points, three rebounds, two assists, four steals and one block in a performance that was reminiscent of AT’s recent stat-stuffing efforts. Since Holland is essentially being trained as Thompson’s protege, performances like Friday night’s should become more frequent as the G-League product settles into his third year in the NBA knowing his option for next season has already been picked up. 

In lieu of last night’s victory, the Pistons are off to a 1-0 start during Group Play of the NBA Cup, but they have three more matchups before finding out who advances to the next round. In the meantime, Detroit has a couple days off to enjoy Halloween before returning to action on Monday, Nov. 2 against the Charlotte Hornets.