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In a game which saw Andre Drummond leaving the floor having played just above 7 minutes, Blake Griffin and the Pistons held on in his absence to clinch an impressive and tight 98-93 win at home. Drummond suffered a nasal injury after he was hit in the face by James Johnson's hand, and will be evaluated Saturday for a nasal contusion.
Also, Pistons' guard Ish Smith(who was playing in his third game after missing 19) left due to abductor tightness. This resilient victory over the visiting Miami Heat takes Detroit's record to 20-24(0.455) on the season, still 12.5 games below the East-leading Bucks. After having lost four in a row, the Pistons have bounced back to win three out of their last four matchups.
On the other hand, the Heat rest at the 7th position out East - two spots above the Pistons - currently holding a 21-22(0.488) after their most recent loss in Detroit. The Heat have been winning and dropping a couple in alternate fashion for the past eight games, this defeat being their second straight loss.
Let's take a look at the best and worst performances from this Pistons-Heat matchup.
Hit: Luke Kennard
This was Luke's third straight 10+ point game, as he played 34 minutes on a reserve role and finished with 22 points against the Heat. Although Kennard is averaging single digits in scoring across his first couple of seasons, he shot an impressive 8-of-17 from the floor and made four of his eight long-range attempts on the night.
"You get open shots when you play hard, when you play fast," Kennard said. "I think that has been helping me out a little bit."
Luke Kennard dropped a career-high 28 points against Philly(he played 37 minutes in that game) last month, and the sophomore has been trying to make a place for him on the Pistons bench ever since.
It goes to show that the talent that Kennard possesses is productive enough to tip the balance of the game if given adequate court time by first-year Coach Dwane Casey.
Flop: Hassan Whiteside
Miami had a miserable night shooting, especially from the foul line, as they could make just 5-of-19 as a collective unit. And Whiteside missing all eight of his free-throw attempts did not help Miami's cause at all.
"We work on them all the time. Maybe we should stop working on them," coach Eric Spoelstra said. "Hassan works on them as hard as anyone, and he's got good technique. He's had stretches like this before and he'll get it back."
Coming off of a 19-point performance against the Bucks in the previous game, it looked like Heat's big men were having some serious trouble getting buckets, even in the absence of Pistons big Andre Drummond.
Hassan played for 19 points and attempted just 6 shots. He finished with just 8 points and 10 rebounds for the game, along with a couple of blocked shots.
Hit: Blake Griffin
Griffin is the only Piston averaging above 17 points per game this season, as his average stands at a career-high 25.7 ppg at the moment. For this game in particular, his resilience to take the early hit of Drummond's departure and still will his side to a win was worth applauding.
Griffin finished with a game-high total of 32 points, along with 11 rebounds and nine assists to lead the charge in an imposing show of mental and physical strength. He has been averaging almost 30 points across the last ten games, with this being his third 30+ point showcase in the previous four games.
Although he missed six of nine attempts from distance, the 11-year veteran finished just one shy of a triple-double, shooting a decent 10-of-24 on the night.
Blake is averaging a career-high 25.7 points per game in a somewhat breakout debut season with the Pistons right now.
Flop: Reggie Jackson
As Pistons are currently out of the playoff picture, looking inwards for hope, Detroit's starting point guard hasn't been the ideal match for Griffin's solo heroics night in and night out.
About to make almost $35 million between this year and the next, RJ's numbers on the court does not match his salary as of late. He is averaging just 14.5 ppg so far in the season and shooting less than 40% from the field apparently.
Against the Heat, Reggie played for a handsome 35 minutes, only to chip in 9 points, 5 rebound and a couple of assists on a sub-par 3-of-8 shooting night. This was Jackson's second single-digit scoring total in the last five games.
He was one of the three Pistons' starters to end up in single-digits in terms of scoring, also committing four personal fouls in the process. To summarise, he can be shopped by the Pistons before the trade deadline if he continues to post highly disappointing numbers for a team's starting point guard.
