Warriors hold off a late surge to beat the Pistons 101-97
Detroit Pistons had four of their last five encounters and were on a roll coming into the match. The high flying Pistons were brought down to earth by a Monta Ellis inspired Golden State Warriors as they fought off a nerve wrecking
surge down the stretch to scratch out a 101-97 win.
First Half
The match started with both teams pressing hard with all guns blazing. The scores were tied seven times within the first seven minutes as Austin Daye made a jump shot to
make it 21-20 in the favor of the Pistons.
Monta Ellis, the league’s leading scorer, who had scored 14 points by then, netted a reverse layup shot to spark a 22-0 run bridging the first and the second quarter as
the Pistons defense went for a nap. Ellis nailed in a triple point shot to make it 45-22 as the Warriors started to pull away.
Stephen Curry slipped in a three pointer to make it 65-33 with 1:58 left in the first half but the Pistons managed to restore some sanity as they finished the half with
nine consecutive points to slash the lead to 23 points going into the second half.
The Detroit Pistons lost track of the proceeding midway through the first half as their defensive weakness was brutally exposed by the Warriors. The Piston committed a total
of 10 turnovers in the first half and shot slightly above 40 percent in comparison to the Warriors who were converting 50 percent of their shots.
Second Half
After a huge stumble in the first half the Pistons entered the third quarter with more purpose. They bridged the gaps in their defense and also improved upon their shooting
as they outscored the Warriors 27-22 in the period to cut the deficit to 87-69 going into the final quarter.
The Detroit Pistons hit the ground running in the fourth quarter stepping up the pressure on the Warrior’s defense and opened a 9-2 spurt to slash the Warriors advantage
to 89-78 within the first three minutes but Reggie Williams nailed in an insuring three pointer for the Warriors to again extend the advantage to 14 points.
The Warriors were controlling the match, keeping the Pistons at bay at 98-86 with 3:48 left on the clock, until Charlie Villanueva decided to let rip two consecutive three
pointers to start a 10-0 run capped by a Tracy McGrady putback layup shot to bring the Pistons within striking distance at 96-98 which really put the cat among the pigeons.
With 47.8 seconds left on the clock, the Pistons tried to make one final push for the win but the heat of the situation got the better of them. McGrady missed a free throw
and with 9 seconds left Gordon committed a crucial turnover.
Monta Ellis made one of two free throws on a Will Bynum personal foul to hand a three point cushion to the Warriors. Villanueva who sparked the Pistons resurgence brought
the deficit to two points after converting a free throw but fouled at a crucial time, handing two charity throws to Rodney Carney who kept his composure to seal the win for the Warriors.
Prominent scorers
Monta Ellis led all scorers as he netted 27 points, 24 of those coming in first half. Stephen Curry added 21 points and four assists while Dorell Wright had 16 points complemented
by six assists and Reggie Williams finished with 14 points.
Six Detroit players scored in double figures with Charlie Villanueva scoring 18 points of the bench accompanied by 8 boards. Tayshaun Prince netted 15 points while Ben Gordon
and Austin Daye scored 14 points each.
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