The Detroit Pistons knew that they would need reinforcements for this one, so a bunch of folks returned from injury to ensure victory agains the undermanned Milwaukee Bucks, 137-111. Jericho Sims notched his first career triple-double while Ryan Rollins scored a team-high 23. Detroit spread the wealth, with Jalen Duren atop their scorers with 21.
Game Recap
AJ Green started this one on fire, draining three threes in the frame. That earned the Bucks an early lead, but Duren and the Pistons would
soon regain it. Sims was his usual menacing self on the boards and in the paint, while Daniss Jenkins dished out about an assist per minute in his limited time for Detroit. Despite some relatively strong play from Ousmane Dieng, Milwaukee finished the quarter down 34-28.
The Pistons extended their lead in the second. AJG was subbed out after two quick fouls brought his total to three, taking out his hot hand. A trend of Detroit racking up points off turnovers continued, with Ron Holland II cashing in twice. The Bucks (and specifically Rollins) would not go quietly into the night though, as they uncorked a 14-2 run to get within four of the home team. But the Pistons quickly regained a double-digit lead. Duncan Robinson then exploded for three threes and then some, as the Bucks ended up down 75-57 at the half.
Detroit came out of intermission on fire, headed by Cade Cunningham hitting shots inside and out. The Bucks were hitting shots; they just weren’t preventing them. Eventually they were able to regain the halftime deficit, highlighted by three threes from Taurean Prince. But Detroit would score the last 10 points on their way to a 112-86 lead after three.
Yet again, it was a strong start to the quarter for the Pistons, headlined by Duren bully ball down low. Things stayed south for the Bucks, but I’ll give a shoutout to Cormac Ryan, who had a nice game and nice eyebrows. I suppose Andre Jackson Jr. was the white flag in this one, coming in midway through the frame. But fret not! Jericho Sims triple-double watch brought garbage time to life… until he got it pretty easily with plenty of time left in the game, lol. Then the real white flags checked in and brought this one to a close.
Stat That Stood Out
The fast-break different was 32-2 (!). The Pistons were moving and grooving in transition, especially in the first half. The Bucks… were not.
