Well that was freaking ugly.
Playing the role of the underdog for the first time all year, the Pistons' perfect start to the season completely collapsed.
It was pretty much over from the start, as the Mavericks shot 81% (17 of 21) en route to 40 points in the first quarter. The Pistons, on the other hand, shot just 26% (5-for-19) in the first quarter and didn't crack 40 points for the night until the third. Add it all up and the Mavs cakewalked to a 37-point victory: 119-82.
Luckily, I didn't actually see most of this one, save the waning seconds of the second and the first 7-10 minutes or so of the third. Looking at the box score, what the hell happened to Ben Wallace? He scored six points with four rebounds?! The Pistons as a whole managed just 26 boards, though that's probably going to happen whenever you allow a team to shoot 59% for the game.
Considering this was a blowout from the start as well as the second game of a back-to-back effort, it's not a surprise the bench saw extensive action: at least 20 minutes for Arroy, Delfino and Evans; at least 14 for McDyess and Darko, and at least four and a half for Dale Davis and Jason Maxiell. But alas, no one did anything that jumps out in the box score. Anyone out there see the whole game? Any performances jump out at you?
Corey over at Motoring suggests the refs were against the Pistons all night, but even he admits the Pistons didn't play well enough for it to be an excuse. I wonder what Eli Zaret will say.
What's the team saying?
"I said in the locker room last night (Friday) when we played in Houston, that if we played like we did there, there was no chance in the world we would go 9-0," Tayshaun Prince said. "And that's what happened."
True dat, Tayshaun. Friday was ugly, but Houston didn't know how to win. Saturday was uglier, and the Mavs put it away.
"You are going to have games like this two or three times in a season," Billups said. "This one is over now and we're moving on. Not taking anything away from them, they were great. But I look forward to playing them the next time."
Circle it on your calendar, Chauncey: March 28. I don't know about you, but I'm glad that's almost four months away.
Mavericks 119, Pistons 82 box score [USATODAY.com]
Mavericks hand Pistons first loss [Detroit News]