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14 points.
That's less than Tobias Harris' and Marcus Morris' point totals for the entire game. And a lot less than Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge.
Unfortunately for Pistons fans, 14 is the total number of points the Pistons put up in the third quarter of tonight's loss in San Antonio. After finishing the first half with 51 points and down one, there was reason for hope. The Pistons were in the game, and managed to put together a few runs to keep it close. Those runs, along with the entire offense, seemed to vanish in the second half.
Pistons hit 22 of 42 in 1H against NBA's No. 1 D. They're 9 of 34 with 2:33 left in 2H. Spurs are pretty good, y'know?
— Keith Langlois (@Keith_Langlois) March 3, 2016
To say Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled on the offensive end would be putting it lightly. KCP finished with four points, going 1-10 and his only made field goal being a layup. Safe to say the lingering stench of the rodeo affected his offense. Andre Drummond also failed to post a double-double with nine points and 14 rebounds, a rarity this season.
The reality is, the Pistons had been leaning heavily on their starters to all play extremely well during that four-game win streak. If there was any chance of leaving San Antonio with a W, the same thing would have to happen, and then some. There were only 11 active players tonight, and offensive options were limited if the starters couldn't get it going. Instead, the Spurs showed why they are the best defensive team in the league, held the starters and the bench down in the second half, and ran away with the game.
The bright side for the Pistons wasn't anything that happened in Texas. In fact, it was the Orlando Magic beating the Chicago Bulls to ensure the Pistons maintained the eighth seed. Thank you Orlando!
Up next, the Pistons head to New York to face the Knicks on Saturday.