Field Level Media
Nov 25, 2019
Luke Kennard led a balanced attack with 20 points and seven assists as the host Detroit Pistons downed the Orlando Magic 103-88 on Monday.
Kennard was among six Pistons in double figures. Blake Griffin contributed 17 points and Bruce Brown had 13 points and eight rebounds. Langston Galloway, Svi Mykhailiuk and Christian Wood all had 12 points for the Pistons, who had lost six of their previous seven games. Andre Drummond led the rebounding effort with 18.
Orlando played without frontcourt starters Nikola Vucevic and Aaron Gordon, who are nursing ankle sprains. Detroit starting forward Tony Snell sat out his third consecutive game with a hip injury.
Terrence Ross scored 19 points off the bench for the Magic, who are 0-7 on the road this season. Evan Fournier had 17 points but shot just 5-for-16 from the field. Markelle Fultz supplied 16 points, Jonathan Isaac had 10 points, six rebounds and four blocks and Mo Bamba grabbed 12 rebounds.
Detroit outscored Orlando 50-33 in the second half. The Pistons finished with a 49-41 rebounding advantage and had 23 assists, compared to 15 for the Magic.
The Pistons shot 43 percent from the field and held the Magic to 38.1 percent shooting. Detroit also made six more 3-pointers (14 to 8) than the visitors.
Ross scored 14 points in the first half as Orlando emerged with a 55-53 halftime edge. A trio of Pistons -- Griffin, Kennard and Wood -- had 10 apiece.
Fultz made a layup midway through the third to give the Magic a 68-67 lead. The Pistons then reeled off 11 unanswered points. Brown made a layup to start the run and Galloway, Kennard and Mykhailiuk drained 3-pointers.
The Pistons carried a 78-70 lead into the final quarter.
Kennard and Mykhailiuk made treys early in the fourth to increase Detroit's lead to 12 at 88-76. Another Mykhailiuk long ball made it 94-80 with 6:15 remaining. The Magic couldn't mount a rally from that point.
--Field Level Media