Detroit Pistons blow 17-point fourth-quarter lead vs. Atlanta Hawks, lose 123-115
The Detroit Pistons were cruising to their second blowout victory in three games. They led the Atlanta Hawks by 17 points midway through the fourth quarter, after leading by double-digits for most of the second half.
Then, the Pistons collapsed. The Hawks forced overtime by outscoring Detroit 24-7 during the remainder of the quarter, tying the game at 106 after Trae Young found a cutting Clint Capela for an open dunk.
The momentum didn't shift in Detroit's favor in overtime. The Hawks outscored the Pistons 41-16 after the 7:08 mark of the fourth and completed the comeback win, 123-115.
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Jerami Grant scored more than 20 points for the 13th consecutive game, finishing the night with a career-high 32 points, six rebounds and five assists. He scored all nine of Detroit's points in overtime. Young scored 38 points and dished 10 assists, Capela had 27 points, 26 rebounds and five blocks and John Collins finished with 31 points and 11 rebounds. Atlanta out-rebounded the Pistons 63-42.
Blake Griffin looks more like his old self
It hasn't been an ideal start to the season for Griffin, who averaged 12.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists while shooting 38.3% overall going into the win against the Hawks. He was coming off one of his worst performances, scoring a season-low five points in 35 minutes.
He looked more like his old self on Wednesday, tallying 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting, seven rebounds and three assists. His best bucket of the night came at the 1:04 mark of the fourth quarter, when he hit a scooping layup off of the high glass and was fouled. He completed the 3-point play to give the Pistons a 106-101 lead.
It's been a slow return to form for Griffin, who missed a year of basketball after soreness in his left knee, and surgery, prematurely ended his 2019-20 season. Head coach Dwane Casey has preached having patience as Griffin re-finds his form. He looked more comfortable against the Hawks, making two of his four 3-pointers, getting a post hook to fall and baiting John Collins into fouling him as he shot a deep 2-pointer.
Stewart recovers after early foul trouble
Stewart had the best game of his young career last Saturday against the Miami Heat. He tallied 10 points and 11 rebounds, both career-highs in just 19 minutes off of the bench. Had he not been in foul trouble, he might’ve improved his tally in both categories.
He fouled out toward the end of the game, and was briefly subbed out midway through the fourth quarter with five fouls. Stewart has emerged as one of the NBA’s best offensive rebounders, but he’s also struggled with fouls, a common issue for young big men. He’s averaging eight fouls per 100 possessions, the fifth-highest rate in the NBA among players who have played at least 10 games this season.
Stewart picked up three fouls in his first eight minutes against the Hawks and was benched early in the second quarter. It cleared the way for Jahlil Okafor to make his first appearance in two games. Stewart was better when he returned in the third quarter, making some nice defensive plays and finding Grant in the paint for a layup for Detroit’s last bucket of the quarter.
Wayne Ellington, still hot from 3
Ellington had one of the best games of his career on Monday, hitting seven 3-pointers and finishing the night with 24 points. He picked up where he left off on Wednesday, hitting x 3-pointers en-route to a xx-point performance. He made three of his triples in the first five minutes of the third quarter, helping the Pistons build a double-digit lead that they would hang onto for most of the rest of the night.
Ellington was hitting 46.5% of his 3-point attempts entering Wednesday’s game, and a red-hot 53.3% from 3 in five games as a starter. Dwane Casey praised his consistency before the game, and he now has the highest percentage from outside on the roster after a hot week.
Svi Mykhailiuk takes advantage of limited minutes
It’s been an uneven season for Mykhailiuk, who has appeared in every game but has seen his minutes and place in the rotation see-saw as he continues working through an extended shooting slump.
He had his best game of the year last Wednesday against the Bucks, scoring a season-high 18 points in 18 minutes and making six of his nine shot attempts. He nearly didn’t play at all in Detroit’s following game against the Heat on Saturday, sitting on the bench until the end of the game, with the Pistons leading by a wide margin.
Mykhailiuk didn’t enter Wednesday's game against the Hawks until the 4:40 mark of the third quarter. He scored six points in 11 minutes, with both buckets being deep 3-pointers. It was a good sign for the third-year sharpshooting guard, who entered the game making just 30.9% of his 3-pointers.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here's how you can gain access to our most exclusive Pistons content. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons blow 17-point lead in 123-115 loss to Atlanta Hawks
