<p FAST BREAKDOWN
Three quick observations from Friday night’s 112-104 win over the Chicago Bulls at United Center
CHARGING BACK – It’s not a blueprint Dwane Casey would endorse, but the Pistons have had a pretty good week by spotting the opposition a big lead. They outscored Minnesota 71-50 in the second half after trailing by 16 to win going away on Wednesday and used the same script to beat Chicago after spotting the Bulls a 21-point lead in the first half. The comeback from 21 down was the biggest of the season, topping the rally from 19 down at Toronto in November. Chicago still led by 11 to start the fourth quarter, but the Pistons opened the quarter on a 27-8 run to go ahead by eight points with a little more than five minutes remaining. Chicago didn’t get any closer than five. Langston Galloway got the fourth-quarter comeback going when he scored 11 points in the opening few minutes. His triple tied the game at 85 with 8:34 to play and Luke Kennard put them in front with another triple at 7:53. The Pistons hit their first four 3-pointers of the quarter. The Bulls opened the game by making 10 of 12 shots. The five rebounds the Pistons collected in the first quarter was less a reflection of their rebounding than it was of their defense. Chicago missed a mere four shot in the quarter. Still, the Pistons got a nice spurt from their bench to start the second quarter and take a 35-32 lead. But it was a 17-point halftime deficit as the Pistons committed 11 first-half turnovers good for 20 Bulls points. Galloway scored 15 points, 12 in the fourth quarter, and Kennard added 14 off the bench. Over the last two second halves, the Pistons have outscored the opposition 134-88.
GUESS BLAKE’S OK – Blake Grififn gave the Pistons a little scare midway through the third quarter when he appeared to injure his right knee. The Pistons called timeout and Griffin went to the locker room with the trainers in tow. He returned to the bench area late in the third quarter and was back on the court to start the fourth. Griffin got the Pistons going with a 3-pointer on the first possession of the quarter. Griffin wound up scoring 16 of his game-high 27 points in the fourth quarter. Partly because of Griffin’s early exit in the third quarter, Andre Drummond wound up playing the entire second half and – after a six-point, six-rebound first half – and recorded his 11th 20-20 game of the season. Drummond finished with 20 points and 24 rebounds in 43 minutes.
FRONTCOURT JUGGLING – Dwane Casey has made a tweak to his frontcourt rotation that was triggered by Zaza Pachulia’s right Achilles inflammation. For the second straight game, Casey used Thon Maker first for Blake Griffin late in the first quarter with Maker then sliding over to center to start the second when Andre Drummond sat. Glenn Robinson III was at power forward alongside Maker. It’s likely that Casey’s use of Robinson instead of Pachulia has more to do with Pachulia’s Achilles soreness than a desire to shake up the second unit. Casey values Pachulia’s screening and ability to serve as a post facilitator. With Drummond playing the entire second half, Robinson didn’t get back in the game after halftime. Maker had three blocked shots in his eight-minute stint in the first half and finished with two points, three rebounds and three blocks.