Las Vegas, July 9 - The Detroit Pistons held off a late-rally by the Memphis Grizzlies to escape with an 80-78 win in Las Vegas on Monday.

Pistons’ rookie Rodney Stuckey made an impressive drive to the hoop, made the basket and got fouled with 49 seconds left. After the made free throw, the Pistons lead was 79-72, but the Grizzlies cut the advantage to just one (78-79) after two made free throws by Kyle Lowry. On the ensuing play, Arron Afflalo was fouled. After Lowry talked to Afflalo the length of the court before the free throws, he made one of two to push the score to 80-78. Mike Conley Jr. had a chance to win it, but his shot fell short and looked to be after the buzzer.

“I’m just trying to help the team out,” Stuckey said about the Pistons’ play calling. “We had a great play and they couldn’t stop it.”

Stuckey had a monster game for the Pistons, hitting for a game-high 27 points (9-16 FG, 9-9 FT) and three rebounds. He overpowered the opposition with his power and quick feet.

“It’s just a matter of getting back into my rhythm,” Stuckey remarked about his play. “It’s been a long time since I’ve played five-on-five basketball.”

Cheikh Samb collected a double-double with 12 points (6-9 FG) and 10 rebounds in the win, while Jason Maxiell had 12 points (6-12 FG) on numerous power slams and eight rebounds.

Lowry had a nice game for Memphis, driving to the basket and drawing contact to get to the free throw line. Lowry attempted 13 free throws, making 12 of them, en route to 23 points (5-10 FG) in 28 minutes of action. Rudy Gay struggled from the floor during the game, hitting just three of his sixteen shots, but still managed a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds