The Detroit Pistons nearly carried a three-game winning streak into their home game against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.
The Pistons lost by just one point when Charlotte Hornets forward Brandon Miller made a buzzer-beating putback. Detroit had won its previous two games against Brooklyn and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Rookie Ron Holland had given the Pistons a one-point lead with 6.1 seconds left after a Charlotte turnover.
“It stings,” coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Obviously, to play the way we played, make the plays that we made down the stretch to get ourselves back in the game and then gained the lead. The contributions from everybody — Ron making a huge play down the stretch. It’s a tough one to swallow.”
Third-year center Jalen Duren played only eight minutes after injuring his ankle. Paul Reed, who had played in only two games before, stepped up in Duren’s absence, scoring 13 points, grabbing two rebounds, and making two steals in 12 minutes.
“He was a huge part of what we did in that second half,” Bickerstaff said. “His energy was great, he defensive rebounded the basketball for us, what he did in pick-and-roll coverages. All those things, he created some energy for us. I thought he was really good.”
Cade Cunningham recorded his second straight triple-double, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. However, he shot 9-for-23 from the field and didn’t make any 3-pointers. Most of his points came in the early part of the game.
“I thought he read the game well,” Bickerstaff said. “Earlier in the game, he was seeing a lot of single coverages and was able to get to the paint and finish.
And then they started sending more bodies to him, so he started sharing the ball and getting other guys open shots. I thought he did a great job of playing a complete game.”
The Hawks have won two of their last three games, including a 121-116 victory over the New York Knicks at home on Wednesday.
Zaccharie Risacher, the top overall pick, had a breakout game, scoring 33 points with seven rebounds, three assists, three steals, and two blocked shots. His previous season high was 17 points.
Risacher had been shooting just 32.9 percent from the field before the game, but coach Quin Snyder encouraged him to stay aggressive on offense.
“He basically tells me to shoot the ball,” Risacher said. “That’s not just from him. That’s from everybody on the coaching staff and my teammates. It helps with my confidence.” Snyder knows Risacher will have ups and downs as a rookie.
“His progress isn’t going to be linear,” Snyder said. “He’s got to stay at it. We have confidence in him if he makes shots or he doesn’t. (Wednesday), he was really good on the defensive glass as well.”
Atlanta was down by five points with less than three minutes remaining but made a 13-1 run to take the lead.
Jalen Johnson scored 23 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, while Trae Young added 23 points and 10 assists after being limited to just two points in the Hawks’ previous game against Boston.
Friday’s game will be the first of a back-to-back for the Hawks, who will host the Chicago Bulls on Saturday.
