Pistons surrender 19-point lead, but recover in OT to edge Heat

Coty M. Davis, The Detroit News on Dec 16, 2024

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

DETROIT — The Detroit Pistons recorded a thrilling 125-124 overtime victory over the Miami Heat Monday night at Little Caesars Arena. They surrendered a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter, where the Heat outscored them, 33-17.

Late in the fourth quarter, Tyler Herro connected on a huge 3-point field goal to cut Miami's deficit to three. On the next offensive possession, Jimmy Butler's layup brought the Heat within a point (112-111) with 1:10 left in the period. Cade Cunningham nailed a pair of free throws to give the Pistons a three-point advantage. However, Herro connected on another triple, sending the game into overtime. The Heat outscored Detroit 18-2 in the final five minutes of regulation.

The Heat and Pistons traded baskets during the final minutes of overtime. Butler scored on a layup attempt to give the Heat a 124-123 lead but lost his shoe in the process. Cunningham took advantage of the five-on-four possession and scored a basket, giving the Pistons a 125-124 lead with 38 seconds remaining. Butler led Miami with a game-high 35 points, 19 rebounds and 10 assists. Herro added 23.

The former No. 1 overall pick led the Pistons with his sixth triple-double of the season, totaling 20 points, 18 assists and 11 rebounds. He recorded eight dimes in the first half, which contributed to a 63-59 lead for Detroit.

Malik Beasley, who started in place of Jaden Ivey, was the recipient of over half of Cunningham's assists, scoring 13 of his team-high 28 points during the first half. He finished shooting efficiently, going 9 of 18 from the floor and 7 of 13 from behind the arc.

Since making his season debut on Nov. 25, Ausar Thompson had his best game despite battling through a lingering knee issue, scoring 19 points and grabbing nine rebounds. He converted a two-handed dunk at the 11:18 mark of the third quarter and landed awkwardly on his left knee. He limped to the sideline, and after a quick evaluation by the training staff, Thompson returned. He finished the night playing a season-best 26 minutes.

Outside of a few nagging injuries, the Pistons have been relatively healthy during the first 26 games of the season. However, Monday night’s contest against the Miami Heat resulted in the Pistons leaving with two rotational players injured.

First, Ivey was a late scratch due to left knee pain and unexpectedly spent the night sitting at the end of the bench dressed in a gray Nike warm-up. At the start of the second quarter, the Pistons lost backup big man Isaiah Stewart, who sustained a hyperextended left knee while contesting a layup attempt against the Heat's Terry Rozier. They are 11-16 overall.

Up next

The Pistons will host the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. The game will be Detroit’s final home game of the calendar year. The Pistons begin a four-game West Coast road trip against the Phoenix Suns on Saturday. Tipoff between the Pistons and Jazz is slated for 7:00 p.m. ET at Little Caesars Arena.

Observations vs. Heat

— Tobias Harris ruled day-to-day: Ivey and Stewart weren’t the only players sidelined against the Heat. Tobias Harris missed his second game this season due to a right thumb sprain sustained against the Boston Celtics on Thursday. While expressing the difficulty of replacing Harris’ production, Bickerstaff revealed prior to the game that the veteran forward will be day-to-day amid his pending return.

— Ausar Thompson put together his best game of the season: Amid his second start, Thompson had his best performance. He displayed his potential as a prominent two-way player. However, it was the small on-court intangibles that made Thompson stand out.

On the first defensive possession, Thompson used his athleticism to break up Duncan Robinson's alley-oop attempt to Bam Adebayo. Thompson later forced Robinson into a turnover after he stripped the ball away amid his attempt to attack downhill. On the offensive end, he provided Cunningham with a persistent target who filled the lane in transition. Four of Cunningham's 18 assists came in transition.

— Improving their ability to defend the 3: The Pistons came into the game as one of the league's worst teams defending against the 3-ball. They allowed their opponents to shoot 37.7% from behind the arc, and their struggles led to Bickerstaff highlighting the issue during a rare two consecutive days of practice. The results led to the Pistons holding the Heat to 27.9% shooting, marking one of their best defensive performances of the year.

____