Solid, solid wins by the Pistons and Wings last night. Both played tight, evenly-matched games and ended up on top. First, the Wings...
Is it bad that I was pleased with an overtime loss on Saturday night? At least they earned a point. I didn't watch too much of the game, but they evidently came back from a two-goal deficit to send it to overtime. Then we all know what happens to the Wings in OT. But, hey, they got a point, which they desperately need.
Last night, they played the Rangers at Madison Square Garden. The first period was vintage Red Wings with dominant puck possession and a flurry of shots on goal, resulting in no actual goals. When Fox flashed the graphic with the Red Wings sporting a 10-3 shots advantage, it was only fitting that the Rangers would break out and tap in a goal, completely against the run of play. Very irksome. The 2nd period was relatively even, but the Wings got the equalizer thanks to some stellar forechecking. Zetterberg sent a pass across the ice to Pavel whose shot slid under a partially-screened goalie, compliments of Homer.
The Wings were much more cohesive this game, and Pavel seemed back to his old self. He was darting in and out of checks and had at least three stellar take-aways that led to scoring chances. The Rangers had plenty of their own chances in the 3rd period, thanks to three straight power plays. Twice they had open-net opportunities that were barely thwarted. Somehow, Jimmy Howard found a way to keep the puck out of the net. With the score deadlocked at 1-1, the Wings made a late rush into the Rangers' zone. Cleary received a cross-ice pass from Zetterberg and shot a no-angle shot from ten feet away. The puck ricocheted off the goalie's skates into the net for the game-winner. Lucky, but somewhat deserved.
Draper added a late empty-netter to cap the 3-1 win. Good effort, good penalty kill. The Wings are now only 1 point from the 8th and final playoff spot!
As for the Stones... they hosted the Wizards at the Palace. Coach Q's boys came out with their usual high energy. Stuckey led the scoring early, as the Pistons threatened to take a double-digit lead throughout most of the first. Savvy 5'5 vet Earl Boykins continued to remind Piston fans of his dominant days at EMU by single-handedly keeping the Wiz in the game, scoring 18 off the bench. In the 2nd quarter, the Piston bench pummeled the Wiz on the glass, regularly getting 2nd and 3rd chance shots. It looked like a sure Piston win, but hot-shooting kept the Wiz close. Boykins hit a 1st half buzzer-beater to cap a 7-0 Wizards run and pull the Wiz to within 3.
That Wiz momentum carried into the 3rd quarter. Stuckey picked up his fourth foul early and had to sit. With Gordon out with an injury, Coach Q was in a quandary. A roster with Hamilton, Stuckey, and Ben Gordon suddenly had no shooting guards. Instead of opting for the sub-6ft guard tandem of Bynumite and Chucky Atkins, Coach Q paired Bynumite with 6'11 Austin Daye. Daye responded with his best game. Hitting all five of his shots - each in a different and difficult fashion - Daye singlehandedly carried the Piston offense in the 3rd. He certainly caught Flip Saunders' attention, as he had his defense trapping Daye in later possessions. When he's on, Daye shows flashes of Danny Granger, but Daye suffers from the typical rookie-inconsistency. Regular minutes will help the kid find a consistent groove.
In the 4th quarter, the Wizards cooled off, as both teams ramped up the defense. Coach Q brought Stuckey back on the court, and the Pistons slowly took control with their current close-out lineup: Bynum, Stuckey, Jerebko, Charlie V, and Big Ben.
Charlie V, by the way, played a solid all-around game, though I wish the dude would take fewer three-pointers. Like Sheed, he has a fluid release, but, also like Sheed, he has an even better post-up game. For the game, Charlie shot 8-19 but only 1-8 from 3pt land. Now, I'm no math genius, but even I can calculate that Charlie shot 7-11 inside the arc. He fares well as a spot-up shooter, but he's developed a habit of hoisting 3s rushed and off-balance. With the way the Piston guards attack the basket, my guess is that Charlie often has to abandon the lane to provide space. But that shouldn't occur on every possession. I did not see the dude did not post-up once in the 2nd half.
In the first half, the Pistons carried the game by working the ball inside and getting layups. They were a jump-shooting team in the 2nd. They hit just enough shots to keep the lead. After a stellar Ben Wallace steal, Stuckey hit a dagger 20 footer with about 50 seconds left to give the Pistons a 6 point cushion. The Wizards mounted a little rally to keep it interesting, but Bynum made just enough free throws to win the game.
This was a good win. Washington was completely healthy and has a roster of talented scorers. The Pistons, as we all know, are desperately short-handed. Even "healthy" players like Villanueva and Bynum are not 100%. But they're still playing competitive, attractive hoops and even winning a few games. The key, not surprisingly, is Ben Wallace. Despite not scoring a single point last night, Big Ben dominated. He led the team in assists (!!) the first half, and then worked some lock-down defense to halt the Wizards' 2nd half surge, commiting nary a foul. Paired with Jerebko, those two make a formidable ball-hawking, board-clearing tandem. After Ben's stellar steal, Mrs. Nofrownmotown stated, "The Pistons are screwed if he goes down."
No doubt.
Like he was in the "Goin' to Work" days, Big Ben is the heart of the team. He must stay healthy. His influence on the younger players cannot be ignored. Kwame Brown was a decent player last year, but he's infinitely more aggressive with Ben in the lineup. Stuckey is now a quality defender (Agent Zero shot 3-9), and Jerebko is like a young Rodman. Coach Q stated publicly, "Jonas is emerging as one of the best rookies in the league." I can't disagree. He might just be one of the best. My hope is that the kid gets an invite to the Rookie/Sophomore game at the All-star break. I can't recall a 2nd rounder ever getting picked for that game.
All in all, an important win by the Pistons. They've got to take care of business at home against the non-elite opposition. They keep bringing the energy, and the wins and fans will follow. Just ask the newest member of the Pistons bench:
Is it bad that I was pleased with an overtime loss on Saturday night? At least they earned a point. I didn't watch too much of the game, but they evidently came back from a two-goal deficit to send it to overtime. Then we all know what happens to the Wings in OT. But, hey, they got a point, which they desperately need.
Last night, they played the Rangers at Madison Square Garden. The first period was vintage Red Wings with dominant puck possession and a flurry of shots on goal, resulting in no actual goals. When Fox flashed the graphic with the Red Wings sporting a 10-3 shots advantage, it was only fitting that the Rangers would break out and tap in a goal, completely against the run of play. Very irksome. The 2nd period was relatively even, but the Wings got the equalizer thanks to some stellar forechecking. Zetterberg sent a pass across the ice to Pavel whose shot slid under a partially-screened goalie, compliments of Homer.
The Wings were much more cohesive this game, and Pavel seemed back to his old self. He was darting in and out of checks and had at least three stellar take-aways that led to scoring chances. The Rangers had plenty of their own chances in the 3rd period, thanks to three straight power plays. Twice they had open-net opportunities that were barely thwarted. Somehow, Jimmy Howard found a way to keep the puck out of the net. With the score deadlocked at 1-1, the Wings made a late rush into the Rangers' zone. Cleary received a cross-ice pass from Zetterberg and shot a no-angle shot from ten feet away. The puck ricocheted off the goalie's skates into the net for the game-winner. Lucky, but somewhat deserved.
Draper added a late empty-netter to cap the 3-1 win. Good effort, good penalty kill. The Wings are now only 1 point from the 8th and final playoff spot!
As for the Stones... they hosted the Wizards at the Palace. Coach Q's boys came out with their usual high energy. Stuckey led the scoring early, as the Pistons threatened to take a double-digit lead throughout most of the first. Savvy 5'5 vet Earl Boykins continued to remind Piston fans of his dominant days at EMU by single-handedly keeping the Wiz in the game, scoring 18 off the bench. In the 2nd quarter, the Piston bench pummeled the Wiz on the glass, regularly getting 2nd and 3rd chance shots. It looked like a sure Piston win, but hot-shooting kept the Wiz close. Boykins hit a 1st half buzzer-beater to cap a 7-0 Wizards run and pull the Wiz to within 3.
That Wiz momentum carried into the 3rd quarter. Stuckey picked up his fourth foul early and had to sit. With Gordon out with an injury, Coach Q was in a quandary. A roster with Hamilton, Stuckey, and Ben Gordon suddenly had no shooting guards. Instead of opting for the sub-6ft guard tandem of Bynumite and Chucky Atkins, Coach Q paired Bynumite with 6'11 Austin Daye. Daye responded with his best game. Hitting all five of his shots - each in a different and difficult fashion - Daye singlehandedly carried the Piston offense in the 3rd. He certainly caught Flip Saunders' attention, as he had his defense trapping Daye in later possessions. When he's on, Daye shows flashes of Danny Granger, but Daye suffers from the typical rookie-inconsistency. Regular minutes will help the kid find a consistent groove.
In the 4th quarter, the Wizards cooled off, as both teams ramped up the defense. Coach Q brought Stuckey back on the court, and the Pistons slowly took control with their current close-out lineup: Bynum, Stuckey, Jerebko, Charlie V, and Big Ben.
Charlie V, by the way, played a solid all-around game, though I wish the dude would take fewer three-pointers. Like Sheed, he has a fluid release, but, also like Sheed, he has an even better post-up game. For the game, Charlie shot 8-19 but only 1-8 from 3pt land. Now, I'm no math genius, but even I can calculate that Charlie shot 7-11 inside the arc. He fares well as a spot-up shooter, but he's developed a habit of hoisting 3s rushed and off-balance. With the way the Piston guards attack the basket, my guess is that Charlie often has to abandon the lane to provide space. But that shouldn't occur on every possession. I did not see the dude did not post-up once in the 2nd half.
In the first half, the Pistons carried the game by working the ball inside and getting layups. They were a jump-shooting team in the 2nd. They hit just enough shots to keep the lead. After a stellar Ben Wallace steal, Stuckey hit a dagger 20 footer with about 50 seconds left to give the Pistons a 6 point cushion. The Wizards mounted a little rally to keep it interesting, but Bynum made just enough free throws to win the game.
This was a good win. Washington was completely healthy and has a roster of talented scorers. The Pistons, as we all know, are desperately short-handed. Even "healthy" players like Villanueva and Bynum are not 100%. But they're still playing competitive, attractive hoops and even winning a few games. The key, not surprisingly, is Ben Wallace. Despite not scoring a single point last night, Big Ben dominated. He led the team in assists (!!) the first half, and then worked some lock-down defense to halt the Wizards' 2nd half surge, commiting nary a foul. Paired with Jerebko, those two make a formidable ball-hawking, board-clearing tandem. After Ben's stellar steal, Mrs. Nofrownmotown stated, "The Pistons are screwed if he goes down."
No doubt.
Like he was in the "Goin' to Work" days, Big Ben is the heart of the team. He must stay healthy. His influence on the younger players cannot be ignored. Kwame Brown was a decent player last year, but he's infinitely more aggressive with Ben in the lineup. Stuckey is now a quality defender (Agent Zero shot 3-9), and Jerebko is like a young Rodman. Coach Q stated publicly, "Jonas is emerging as one of the best rookies in the league." I can't disagree. He might just be one of the best. My hope is that the kid gets an invite to the Rookie/Sophomore game at the All-star break. I can't recall a 2nd rounder ever getting picked for that game.
All in all, an important win by the Pistons. They've got to take care of business at home against the non-elite opposition. They keep bringing the energy, and the wins and fans will follow. Just ask the newest member of the Pistons bench:
I admit I'm a homer....but the Rangers were taking some dives to get some cheap cheap penalties.
ReplyDeleteEx-Wing Sean Avery layed on the ice, hobbled around, penalty was called...what do you know...skating just fine.
Yes, that's Avery. The Rangers did receive the benefit of the whistles late... and was especially unnerving after a non-call when Z was tripped. I guess that just makes the win all the more satisfying.
ReplyDeleteThere's soccer-like flopping in the NHL and NBA now. It's quite sad, but I guess that's sports. Gamesmanship, trickery, and deception have been an integral part of baseball since the 1800s, so maybe it's not a horrible thing.