Just like the last time the Pistons played the Bucks, Michael Redd put on a show Friday night, putting the Bucks in position to win until the Pistons used their veteran savvy to pull out a last-minute victory. Redd, who previously scored a career-high 42 points in his last game against Detroit, scored 37 on Friday on 13-20 shooting, going 6-8 from beyond the three-point line and 5-5 from the charity stripe. He's a bad, bad man. With his range, the Bucks are rarely out of a game, at least against Detroit.
But while Redd's hot shooting helped the Bucks jump out to a 15-0 lead to start the game and an 18-point lead early in the third quarter, Detroit once again proved they could flip a switch and pull out a victory. From the Detroit News:
Trailing 69-51 in the third, the Pistons calmly picked up their game, outscoring the Bucks 61-36 in the final 20 minutes for a 112-105 victory.
"We never believe we are out of a game, no matter what the score is," Chauncey Billups said. "You can't measure our pride."
Tayshaun Prince, who struggled greatly (four points in 42 minutes) in the last go-round with the Bucks, scored 25 on 10-15 shooting with five boards, six assists, three steals and three blocks. Rip Hamilton also scored 25 on 8-14 shooting (not to mention 9-10 free throws) with six assists.
The real key to this game, however, was probably Antonio McDyess. In just 23 minutes, he shot 7-10 to finish with 18 points and six boards. Anyone remember how cold this guy was early in the year? He shot less than 37% the first month, but in case you haven't noticed, he's shot 56.7% and 52.9% the last two months, respectively. He's rounding into form at just the right time... even if his free-throw shooting is still abysmal. For video of his escapades on Friday, head over to Need 4 Sheed to watch George Blaha's post-game interview.
The effort wasn't always there for the Boys in Blue, but they certainly came through when it mattered. After the Bucks pulled ahead by one point with two minutes and change on the clock, the Pistons made their last six shots, including two free throws by Chauncey Billups, while collecting three blocks on the other end to put the game on ice.
How did Andrew Bogut, the No. 1 draft pick from last June, hold up? As our new friends at Milwaukee Bucks Diary pointed out, he was simply abused:
At power forward Rasheed Wallace manhandled rookie Andrew Bogut. At times it appeared Wallace was playing defense against Bogut with a tennis racket in his right hand. Bogut couldn't shoot over him, and wasn't really creative when it came to conjuring some alternative approaches. Thus, he was overwhelmed. Wallace stamped "Return to Sender" on several of Bogut's rather weak shooting efforts.
Bogut finished with six points (on 3-9 shooting) in 29 minutes, adding seven boards and a block. Former Flintstone Charlie Bell had a nice homecoming, though, scoring 16 with four boards and three assists, adding a steal and a block.
Pistons 112, Bucks 105 box score [ESPN]
Pistons put Bucks back in their place [Detroit News]
Dyess Shines In Pistons Win Against Bucks [Need 4 Sheed]
Pretty good isn't good enough for Bucks [Milwaukee Bucks Diary]