TEAM COLORS
The story of the game in Pistons red, white and blue
BLUE COLLAR – Greg Monroe keeps expanding his arsenal, scoring in different ways – putting the ball on the floor more, scoring with either hand, exhibiting a post move or two. He knocked down a jump shot from 16 and scored with a deep lefty hook against Utah. But he also keeps showing up as a hard-nosed rebounded and willing defender. Monroe racked up his fourth straight double-double – the second time in his rookie season he’s strung four straight double-doubles together – and finished with 12 points and 16 boards. The 16 rebounds were one off his NBA best.
RED FLAG – Utah’s starting frontcourt of Andrei Kirilenko, Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson scored with deadly efficiency early and often against the Pistons, combining to shoot 28 of 40 as all three topped 20 points. Kirilenko, who had four dunks in the first quarter alone, finished with 21 points on 9 of 11 shooting. Millsap added 23 on 9 of 12. And Jefferson wound up with 20 on 10 of 17 shooting. They also combined for 27 rebounds, 11 from Millsap. They were primarily responsible for Utah shooting more than 60 percent for most of the night before settling just under at 59.5.
Jerry Sloan went out that door, Deron Williams followed and they apparently took the spell they held over the Pistons with them. Losers of 11 straight to the Utah Jazz, the Pistons rallied from seven points down in the fourth quarter and got contributions from all nine players John Kuester had available one night after only six Pistons played.
Among the Pistons who didn’t play were Tayshaun Prince, Rip Hamilton and Ben Wallace – which means that the Pistons who played Saturday were as different from the predecessors who hadn’t defeated Utah since March 2005 as the Ty Corbin-coached Jazz were from the Sloan-Williams teams that ran roughshod over them all those seasons.
“I think it was a look into the future,” said Will Bynum, who contributed 11 points and eight assists – seven and three in the fourth quarter when the Pistons fell seven down, then went on a 12-0 run. “Better yet, maybe the future is now.”
Kuester started Austin Daye, Greg Monroe and Chris Wilcox up front with Ben Gordon and Rodney Stuckey in the backcourt. Daye scored 11 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter and Gordon nine of his 17.
Gordon, Daye and Charlie Villanueva combined to make 10 of 12 3-point shots and rookie Greg Monroe racked up his fourth straight double-double since returning from the All-Star break, going for 12 points and 16 boards, and Rodney Stuckey quietly had a monster night: 28 points, eight assists, five boards and only one turnover. Even DaJuan Summers contributed seven points, five of them in the fourth quarter when Kuester entrusted him with the first nine-plus minutes.
“There was a cohesiveness we haven’t had, an energy we haven’t had on a consistent basis,” Kuester said. “I take my hat off to these guys. They were into the game, played hard. It’s amazing. Sometimes you’re not going to execute the right way, but when you play with energy and intelligence, good things will happen.”
Daye apologized to Kuester before the game, he said, for showing up late for Friday morning’s shootaround in Philadelphia, becoming one of the seven players who did not play after either not going to shootaround or getting there as it was ending.
“I apologized to Coach,” said Daye, who flatly denied intentionally skipping shootaround, citing a miscommunication after a time change but acknowledging full responsibility. “He knows where I come from. … It’s inexcusable for a player to be late for a miscommunication. I got benched and I understood why. I didn’t hold a grudge. I told him that was the right decision and he stepped up and started me today and I proved his point to where I can play well when he puts me out there.”
He, Chris Wilcox and Stuckey returned. But Prince (back), Hamilton (groin) and Tracy McGrady (headache) all sat out, as did Wallace, who will be away from the team for several days after the Saturday death of his 58-year-old brother, the Rev. James McBride.
Whether it was the shorter bench that clarified roles, a team chastened by Friday’s backlash or the youthful mix of players given rare extended opportunities, it all coalesced for the Pistons on a night that electrified The Palace as it hasn’t often been the past two seasons.
“It was fun,” Bynum said. “I thought we played with a whole lot more energy. The roles were much simpler today and everybody kind of knew what to do once they got out there, what to expect.”
When Utah opened its biggest lead at seven points with 8:26 to go, Jason Maxiell helped turn the game far more dramatically than his four points and four rebounds suggest. He grabbed two offensive boards on a possession that resulted in a Ben Gordon triple to begin a 12-0 Pistons run in which he assisted on Daye’s triple to put the Pistons ahead 96-95 and knifed in front of Al Jefferson for a steal he converted into a layup.
There was one streak longer than the Utah spell that also ended with Saturday’s win. It had been nine years – April 8, 2002, to be exact – since the Pistons last won a game that didn’t involve at least one of Rip Hamilton, Ben Wallace or Tayshaun Prince.
“Those guys are a big part of our team,” Monroe said. “They’ve been a part of this franchise for a long time. Getting a win without them means a lot, but I’d still rather they be playing and helping us out.”
The Pistons might not be quite ready to close the book on their era, of course, but at least the look ahead Saturday’s win provided them made it seem like a future rippling with possibility.