Drummond Leads Pistons Past Bucks, 102-95, For Third Straight Win
AUBURN HILLS (AP) — Andre Drummond had 17 points and 23 rebounds, Reggie Jackson scored 23 points, and the Detroit Pistons beat the Milwaukee Bucks 102-95 on Friday night.
Drummond was 7 for 18 from the field and 3 for 10 at the line. It was his fifth 20-rebound game of the season; the rest of the league has combined for only three.
Milwaukee closed to 86-80 with two minutes to play, but Marcus Morris grabbed an offensive rebound and former Buck Ersan Ilyasova knocked down a 3-pointer to make it a nine-point game.
Detroit's Greg Monroe had 14 points and 13 rebounds against his former team. Another ex-Piston, Khris Middleton, led the Bucks with 21 points.
Morris also had 23 points for Detroit on 7-for-14 shooting. Ilyasova had 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Pistons never trailed, but weren't able to pull away, either. They finished the first half on an 11-2 run to carry a 51-40 advantage into the break. Detroit hit six 3-pointers in the half, compared to one for the Bucks, and had a 16-6 edge in points off turnovers.
Drummond had eight rebounds in the third, giving him 20 for the game.
The Bucks fouled Drummond, a 37 percent shooter from the line, on back-to-back possessions in the fourth, but both times it was under the basket. He split both pairs, putting Detroit up 78-72, but Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd stuck to what he said before the game, and did not have his team intentionally put him on the line.
TIP-INS
Bucks: Monroe was greeted with a mixture of cheers, boos and cries of "Moose" in his first regular-season return to the Palace of Auburn Hills. Monroe played his first five years in Detroit before leaving this summer as a free agent.
Pistons: C Aron Baynes played in a mask, one day after undergoing surgery on a broken nose. Baynes broke his nose on Nov. 27 in Oklahoma City, but played with the injury until Thursday's surgery. ... PG Reggie Jackson sported a bandage over his left eye. Jackson was hit above the eye late in Wednesday's overtime win over Phoenix and needed stitches after the game.
BAYLESS HURT AGAIN
The Bucks lost Jerryd Bayless to an ankle sprain midway through the third quarter, resulting in more playing time for struggling Michael Carter-Williams. Carter-Williams finished with six points on 3-of-8 shooting in 26 minutes.
UP NEXT
Bucks: Host the Knicks on Saturday.
Pistons: Host the Lakers on Sunday.
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