The Detroit Pistons let one slip away Tuesday (Feb. 1). | Wikimedia Commons/farlane
The Detroit Pistons let one slip away Tuesday (Feb. 1). | Wikimedia Commons/farlane
The Detroit Pistons let one slip away Tuesday (Feb. 1), as the New Orleans Pelicans took charge in the waning minutes of the game for a 111-101 win.
“We got real stagnant,” point guard Frank Jackson said after the game in a report on NBA.com. “We were rolling and they just got us back on our heels and got a couple of easy ones. That was a tough one.”
The Pistons scored 65 points in the first half, scoring like fans expected they would be able to. Performance fell off in the third and a 15-point lead dwindled, but held up into the first couple minutes of the fourth. The Pistons were held to 14 points in the final quarter as the Pelicans took a lead and built upon it.
With the return of Jerami Grant and Kelly Olynyk after the two combined to miss 61 games because of injuries and health protocols, the Pistons kept it close and even enjoyed a lead for much of the game.
“I think we were playing really well for the first 2½ quarters,” Grant told NBA.com. “We let up in the third quarter. Just got to finish games out how we started.”
Coach Dwane Casey said the team got "discombobulated" in the fourth quarter.
“As much as guys have been out, trying to get back in, it’s difficult,” he said.
Cory Joseph led the Pistons (12-38) with 18 points, while Grant added 17 and Jackson put in 14. Brandon Ingram had 26 for the Pelicans (19-32).
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