Grizzlies 105, Pistons 91
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Mike Conley scored 19 points, and the Memphis Grizzlies stretched their winning streak to four games by trouncing the Detroit Pistons 105-91 at The Palace on Tuesday.
Zach Randolph contributed 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Ed Davis added 14 points for Memphis (34-18). Longtime Pistons forward Tayshaun Prince was held to four points and three rebounds in his return at The Palace. Prince, drafted by the Pistons in 2002, was traded Jan. 30 to Memphis in a three-team deal.
The Grizzlies shot 56.3 percent from the field and forced 17 turnovers.
Jonas Jerebko and Brandon Knight had 13 points apiece for the Pistons (21-34), who had won three of their last four prior to the All-Star break.
Pistons center Greg Monroe saw his streak of eight straight double-doubles snapped as he managed just nine points and six rebounds. The last Piston with a longer double-double streak was Grant Hill, who had 10 straight in March 1996.
Detroit coach Lawrence Frank was forced to call timeout with 8:02 left in the third quarter after transition baskets by Prince and Conley gave Memphis a 65-47 lead. The break failed to change the momentum, as the Grizzlies soon went on a 13-0 run to make it 78-51. Conley had a three-point play and 3-point basket during that outburst, and Davis finished it with a fast-break dunk.
That led to extended garbage dunk, as most of the starters for both sides sat during the fourth quarter.
Prince received a big ovation from the sparse crowd during player introductions. The home crowd was even happier with the Pistons' performance in the early going, as Detroit forced seven first-quarter turnovers and took a 30-22 lead.
The game turned around in the second quarter. The Grizzlies finished the half on a 23-3 run to grab a 53-42 halftime lead.
Memphis' bench provided a big boost, outscoring Detroit's reserves 23-7 before halftime, with Quincy Pondexter contributing eight of those points. The Pistons shot 1-for-9 from the field and committed seven turnovers in the last eight minutes of the half.
NOTES: The Grizzlies play 31 games in the final 58 days of the season, including Tuesday's game, while the Pistons play 28. "Coming down the stretch, a lot of teams will be playing a lot of games," Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. "There's three or four teams that have played more games than anybody else but most teams are in the same boat where it's a sprint to the finish line." ... Entering play Tuesday, Detroit forward Charlie Villanueva had made 69 3-pointers since Nov. 25, third most among NBA reserves behind Orlando's J.J. Redick (73) and New York's Steve Novak (71). Villanueva went 0-for-5 from 3-point range against the Grizzlies, and he scored two points. ... Memphis has won 48 of its last 69 regular-season games. ... The Grizzlies are 17-0 when reaching the 100-point mark. ... The Pistons aren't expected to make a significant move before the trade deadline Thursday and that has made the week less stressful for his players, according to Frank. "It's one thing when your name is always in the paper but no one's in the paper," he said. ... Entering the game, Detroit was 10th in defensive field-goal percentage but ranked just 28th in points in the paint allowed. "We must defense our paint better," Frank said.
