Down 12 with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter -- on the road no less, where the Pistons are better than only Charlotte -- I didn't think a win was even remotely possible until I was reminded we were playing the more sorry Wizards as Rodney Stuckey led a 19-6 fourth quarter run.
And the last minute of the game almost made up for all the pain one had to endure to make it through this 'ugly, grimy, grindy' game; it all culminating with Stuckey taking the inbounds with five seconds left, going out of body and hitting a clutch, off-balance jumper with 00.2 on the clock.
Here, watch:
I thought for a split second that I was about to allow myself to be mad at this win for lottery purposes, but then I saw Greg Monroe's reaction:
I can't stay mad at that. Sure, the argument can be made that if we want to enjoy our favorite players exulting on a more consistent basis in the future, we need to lose now. But Stuckey hitting a dagger jumper and Moose jumping up and down like he's a singing kangaroo is worth the couple steps back from better draft odds ... for the moment.
- Stuckey finished with 24 points after going off for 12 during the comeback. It's good to have him back and still playing at a high level despite missing a few games.
- This was the Wizards' third straight loss at home after being up double digits late in the game.
- Isolayshaun almost ruined the day again, but Greg Monroe wanted buckets more than Prince isos at the end of games are a sign of wanting lottery balls; Moose tapped in the terrible shot to give the Pistons a one-point lead with 23+ seconds left. After John Wall missed a wild layup, Ben Wallace split a pair before a Nene hook to tie the game and Stuckey's cold blooded jumper.
- The Pistons really pushed the pace in the second half, something Frank was stressing. Knight was going a mile a minute it seemed at all times, so much that he took out the entire water supply behind the Pistons bench:
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- Knight finished with 8 points (on 3-for-13 shooting), 7 assists (1 TO), and 6 rebounds. His Kentucky counterpart John Wall had 14 points (on 6-for-17 shooting), 9 assists (3 TO), and 7 rebounds.
- Monroe finished with his 24th double-double of the season. He was in foul trouble for most of the game.
- Jerebko was awesome. 9 points and 12 rebounds. I'm actually wearing my Jerebko tee as I type this. Really super.
- Big thanks to Rob for the preview. If you're interested in doing a game preview (or even a game recap), you can sign up here. Only 17 games left.
- Pistons are in Cleveland on Wednesday and then Chicago on Friday.
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"Brandon's hustle play was a momentum-changing play. Guy took a shower during the game, and that doesn't happen a lot," Frank said. "I thought that really pumped our guys up."