Pistons 96, Bucks 94
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Tayshaun Prince scored 20 points, including the go-ahead free throws with 10.9 seconds remaining, and the Detroit Pistons edged the Milwaukee Bucks 96-94 at The Palace on Sunday night.
Greg Monroe had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Jason Maxiell added 10 points and 10 rebounds for Detroit, which has won four of its past five games. The Pistons (11-22) trailed only once but barely survived Milwaukee's late rally.
Monta Elllis scored a game-high 30 points, and Ersan Ilyasova added 24 points for the Bucks, who erased a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Both teams were coming off victories over the Miami Heat.
Pistons sixth man Rodney Stuckey missed his second consecutive game with a left ankle sprain.
Ellis made two baskets in the final minute of the third quarter, cutting Detroit's lead to 78-71. The Bucks (16-13) couldn't make any headway during the first seven minutes of the fourth, but back-to-back 3-pointers by Ellis and Mike Dunleavy closed the gap to 92-89. After a few empty possessions, Ilyasova tied the game with 1:43 left on another 3-pointer.
Following a Brandon Knight turnover, Ellis hit a fallaway jumper to give Milwaukee its first lead. Prince tied the game at 94-94 with a hook shot, and Ellis missed an 18-footer.
Prince was fouled along the baseline and hit his decisive free throws. Ellis then missed another 18-footer contested by Knight, and the clock expired as both sides scrambled for the rebound.
The Pistons scored the first 13 points, prompting some fans to chant "Shutout! Shutout!" An Ellis layup halted that, but the home team stayed hot the rest of the half, shooting 57.1 percent while taking a 55-45 lead at the break.
Milwaukee forward Luc Mbah A Moute needed three stitches to close a cut to his lip, an injury he suffered just 1:17 into the game. He finished with two points and five rebounds in 21 minutes.
NOTES: Neither team has ever swept the season series, even though they have been playing since the 1968-69 season. This was the first of four games between the division rivals this season. Milwaukee led the all-time series 118-99 before Sunday. ... Detroit was playing the second game of a five-game homestand, its longest this season. ... The Pistons are 1-13 when allowing 100 points or more. ... Monroe averaged 20.5 points and 11.8 rebounds against Milwaukee last season. ... Bucks coach Scott Skiles set the NBA single-game assists record 22 years to the day. Skiles had 30 assists for the Orlando Magic against the Denver Nuggets. "I don't give it a lot of thought," he said. "The game is a lot different now, so it's hard for anybody to (break) it." ... The Pistons reserves scored 85 and 64 points in the previous two games. According to Elias Sports Bureau, it's the first time in franchise history the bench has scored at least 60 points in back-to-back games since it started keeping such stats in 1970. The Detroit bench managed just 33 points Sunday. ... Milwaukee center Larry Sanders entered the game leading the NBA in blocks (3.04 per game). He had just one block against Detroit.
