Game Recap: Pistons' Defense Shows Promise in Win Over Bucks

The Detroit Pistons defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 98-83 tonight in a convincing fashion, as Detroit's tough defense bothered nearly every player on the team for the majority of the game. The Pistons defense showed in the stat sheet, as they put together 8 steals and 4 blocks, (3 from Dre) along with dominating the lengthy Bucks on the boards with a 58-40 advantage.

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The Pistons defense was shaky at times, with Marcus Morris and Ish Smith combining to shoot a pedestrian 9-33 from the field. But, they contributed in other ways and every other Piston shot 50% or better. The bench was exceptional tonight also, as Leuer, Baynes, Udrih, and Stanley Johnson poured in contributions across the board of efficient shooting numbers.

One of the stars tonight was Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who broke out of his early-season offensive slump to put up 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists, while also being effective on the defensive end, with 2 steals. However, the true star tonight was Andre Drummond, who was very effective on both ends, putting up his first of many 20-20 games this season, with 20 points and 23 rebounds, along with this vicious slam early in game:

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Drummond's words on his performance post game:

"Offensively I was in sync tonight."

Hopefully, we'll be looking at many more of these dominant offensive showings from Dre this year.

The star for the Bucks was the Greek Freak, who netted a near triple-double with 17 points, 8 boards, and 8 dimes, and surprisingly showing off his smooth jumper. Milwaukee's bench also had a good showing, putting up 30 points collectively.

One thing that was nice to see of the Pistons was their improved free throw shooting, and more specifically, Andre Drummond, who started 3-4 and later ended up going 4-8. The Pistons are looking like a very good free throw shooting team, especially once Drummond brings his numbers up a little more.

The Pistons take on the 1-1 Knicks at the Palace on Tuesday, before taking on Denver and Brooklyn and then going on their usual west coast road trip afterward.

Featured Image: Raj Mehta/ USA TODAY Sports