Pistons vs. Hornets final score: Pistons blow big lead, fall to Hornets 108-106

I am just going to pretend that the team we saw in the first half is the team that we will see this season.

The Pistons cruised out to a 32-27 lead in the first quarter as they were lead by an engaged Andre Drummond. He had 13 points on mostly rim runs and putback finishes. He also did a pretty good job protecting the rim. The Pistons moved the ball well and were hitting their shots.

That trend continued into the second quarter as the bench brigade got involved. Henry Ellenson hit a three, Luke Kennard hit a three, and Langston Galloway hit a three. The Pistons sprinted out to a 63-45 lead at halftime and it looked like they were going to run away with it. Everybody was hitting their shots and they looked like a team in midseason form.

Then the second half happened...everybody on the Pistons forgot how to shoot and Charlotte was firing on all cylinders. The Pistons did not record their first field goal of the third quarter until six minutes in. The Pistons would hold onto a one point lead heading into the final frame.

The fourth quarter was pretty competitive and the Pistons had a chance to win down by one with the ball and eight seconds on the clock. However, Tobias Harris dribbled into traffic and lost the ball to Frank Kaminsky.

The good thing is this is preseason, so it doesn’t count. There were a few bright spots for the Pistons. Andre Drummond finished the game with 16 points, but more impressively was 6-8(!) from the free throw line after unveiling a new free throw release. Luke Kennard was also solid with 10 points. He was hitting his shots and it is going to be tough for Stan Van Gundy to keep him off the court. Jon Leuer looked like first half of last season Jon Leuer with 12 points on 5-6 shooting.

The Hornets were carried in the second half by their first round pick Malik Monk, who finished with 19 points. Frank Kaminsky finished with 13 points and got into a bit of a back-and-forth with Tobias Harris late in the game.

The Pistons will face the Hawks on Friday at 7 p.m. at Little Caesars Arena.

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