Pistons at Pacers preview: Pistons look to get back to winning ways in Indy

14 points and 21 rebounds by Andre Drummond led the way for a 114-97 Pistons’ win over the Pacers last week. Detroit outscored Indiana 56-36 in paint points while also scoring 26 points (11 for Pacers) off turnovers. Victor Oladipo topped Indiana with 21 points, however, it took him 21 shots to do so.

Game Vitals

When: November 17th at 7 p.m. EST
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse - Indianapolis, Indiana
Watch: Fox Sports Detroit (League Pass)

Analysis

Domantas Sabonis was absent from the Pistons’ win described above but should suit up tonight. Rarely is an actual play called for Sabonis but he’s still been a steady and positive influence on the Pacers’ upbeat offensive approach.

Most of his annoyingly fundamental activity is done in and around the basket as 61 of his 110 field goal attempts have come within the confines of the restricted area. Sabonis’ is at his best when rolling to the rim; he’s crafty enough to finesse the ball through the hoop while not shying away from absorbing contact:

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Al Jefferson logged season highs in minutes played (22) and points scored (19) while having his way on the block against all three Pistons’ centers:

By my count, that was his first dunk in 14 years.

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The Pacers have trouble defending all aspects of the pick-and-roll which is still a very large part of the Pistons’ offense. Indiana is ranked 27th or lower in defending the ball handler, the roll man and all derived offense from the PNR.

Reggie Jackson, in particular, has been fantastic at directing traffic in this action.

While I hate to say “I told you so”, well, I told you so. I never wandered in my affection for Jackson and always believed he would bounce back. I’m a “big picture” kinda guy who tends to wait for all information to come in before I reach a verdict.

It’s called “patience”, guys - he was hurt!

Projected Lineup

Detroit (10-4)
Reggie Jackson, Avery Bradley, Andre Drummond, Stanley Johnson, Tobias Harris

Indiana (7-8)
Darren Collison, Victor Oladipo, Myles Turner, Thad Young, Bojan Bogdanovic

Prediction

Detroit bounces back after the road loss against Milwaukee in a big way. One ticket to Blowout City, please:

Pistons 104, Pacers 100