Drummond, Jackson help Pistons edge Nets 105-100

The league’s top rebounder as well as its worst foul shooter might be hitting the glass harder when the visiting Pistons try to avoid a third straight loss Monday night against the Brooklyn Nets (7 p.m. pregame, 7:30 tipoff on FOX Sports Detroit).

Drummond reached 20 points for the 18th time by shooting 10-for-15 from the floor.

NEW YORK (AP) – Reggie Jackson was almost on the bench, his coach believing he was being beaten by cramps. Unfortunately, Lopez also tipped in the shot that cinched the win for Detroit when he went up to block Reggie Jackson’s five-foot floater that gave Detroit a 104-100 lead with 14 seconds left.

That flair was on display in the third quarter of Monday night’s 105-100 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.

Jackson had been listed as questionable to play because of dehydration but started and played 31 minutes, making huge plays during the last of them.

They have one attractive expiring contract for reserve guard Brandon Jennings, but coach Stan Van Gundy said he and general manager Jeff Bower have examined the trade market, and there doesn’t appear to be a deal that fits the Pistons right now. “I was about to take him out and then he made every play down the stretch”.

He had been so weakened after the last game that he remained overnight in Toronto after a loss on Saturday.

“I think we’ve just been playing looser and looser as a group”, Lopez said. “Everybody’s dealing with something at this point”.

“That’s just the way it goes but I thought we played that possession very well”. “I mean, we can’t win them all, obviously we’re going to lose games, but we don’t allow the games to get us down and let the losses pile up”. “He’s got to have say in who he has as a coach”. “But it was something that was a focus tonight”. Andrea Bargnani was the team’s second-leading scorer with 18 points. Their record under interim coach Tony Brown dropped to 2-10. “Drummond is a load”. “One area killed us”. He had nine points and three assists in the frame, including seven points and an assist in the final 2:55 after the Nets took a two-point lead. He finished with six assists, while Ersan Ilyasova scored 16 points. However, some Swag magic came out in the third as the Pistons went on a 17-2 run to take a 75-65 lead. Andre Drummond had a dominant third by devouring offensive rebounds to make up for some questionable shots.

Andre Drummond’s terrible free-throw shooting hasn’t been the problem for the Detroit Pistons. He never has won more than 32 games in his previous three National Basketball Association seasons. Shane Larkin had an impressive day passing with 14 assists.

“It’s just not changing, so I don’t know what we’re going to do, but we’re not a good defensive team right now”. “And we do play the games today, so you’ve got to have some perspective there, too”. We’re just not defending.

Friday against Cleveland, Drummond’s frustration boiled over to the point that he got into a heated verbal exchange with a fan who’d been telling him to shoot his free throws underhanded.