Stuckey scores 35, Monroe adds 32 as Pistons top Kings 124-112 - Washington Post

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Stuckey scores 35, Monroe adds 32 as Pistons top Kings 124-112 - Washington Post Mar 15th 2012, 06:23 Rodney Stuckey scored 35 points and Greg Monroe matched his career high with 32 for the Pistons, who used a huge third-quarter effort to pull away from the Sacramento Kings, in compiling a season-high points total in a 124-112 victory Wednesday night. Despite a poor record, the Pistons (16-27) are only three games out of the eighth and last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Pistons had a dismal 4-20 record on Feb. 1 when they lost their seventh straight. Since that loss to New Jersey, the Pistons are 12-7. This is clearly a different team that started the season and it was evident against the Kings. The Pistons were behind by 16 midway through the second quarter, yet dominated the remainder of the game. They shot 58 percent, made eight of 13 3-pointers, and had 29 assists and only 10 turnovers in an up-tempo game. "We've been coming together as a team," Detroit coach Lawrence Frank said. "It's a collaboration in a lot of different areas at both ends of the floor. It's not one thing or one player, it's many different things." There were many different things the Kings couldn't contend with at the defensive end, even though Detroit entered the game as the third-lowest scoring team in the NBA. Left open frequently on the perimeter, Stuckey and Tayshaun Prince (28 points) knocked down shots all game. The pair combined to shoot 7 of 9 from 3-point range. Monroe got a measure of revenge after a three-point game three weeks ago against Kings center DeMarcus Cousins, who had 26 points and 15 rebounds in the first meeting. The Detroit center looked inspired throughout as he dominated inside. In a battle of second-year centers, Monroe clearly got the best of Cousins in the rematch. Monroe made 15 of 20 shots, grabbed 11 rebounds and had three assists. Foul-plagued Cousins missed 10 of 15 shots and finished with 14 points and seven rebounds. "Facing him does (motivate me)," said Monroe, who made all five shots in the fourth quarter when he scored 11 points. "We're cool with each other. Both of us are young and focused on being the best players we can be. Tonight I made sure when I got to the rim, I was finishing strong." The Kings could not slow Stuckey in the third quarter. The veteran guard led the Pistons' 40-23 effort in the third, connecting on four 3-pointers and scoring 19 points as the Pistons built their lead to 97-81 entering the fourth. Stuckey scored a season-high 36 points in the earlier victory over the Kings. "That guy has been playing great for the last two weeks," Kings coach Keith Smart said. Detroit made 15 of 20 shots in the third quarter, including all five 3-point attempts, in posting their highest points total in a period this season. The Pistons never let the lead get below eight points in the fourth. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.

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