by Casey Holdahl

The Trail Blazers (28-20) play the first game of a four-game road trip tonight against the Detroit Pistons (35-13) at the Palace at Auburn Hills. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m.

Tonight’s game is the last regular season showdown between these two teams, with the Trail Blazers winning the first contest 103-97 at the Rose Garden. That game marked the first time since 2003 that Portland defeated Detroit at home.

LaMarcus Aldridge led all scorers in that game with 22 points while also adding a game-high 10 rebounds. Jarrett Jack had one of his better games of the season in the last meeting, compiling 20 points and four assists off the bench.

The Trail Blazers, fresh off a 100-97 win against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, haven’t won back-to-back games in almost a month. Winning consistently is something Detroit has excelled at recently as the Pistons are in the midst of a six-game winning streak with recent victories against the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers. Detroit’s last loss came by way of a 102-100 defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic. The Piston’s haven’t dropped a home game since a 100-93 loss to the Sacramento Kings on January 21.

The Trail Blazers have won seven of the last nine meetings on the Pistons home court.

Portland will be without forward James Jones who didn’t make the trip due to a sore left knee. Jones is currently ranked third in the NBA in three-point percentage. Brandon Roy, who was recently selected to participate in the 2008 All-Star game, may also be unavailable for personal reasons.

Tonight’s game is set to air on Comcast SportsNet channel 37 with the pregame show starting at 4:30 p.m. You can also listen to game on 750 AM KXL.