Raptors 99, Pistons 82
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Rudy Gay and DeMar DeRozan scored 21 points apiece as the Toronto Raptors snapped a five-game losing streak with a 99-82 victory over the Detroit Pistons at The Palace on Friday.
Amir Johnson contributed 20 points and eight rebounds, and Jonas Valanciunas supplied 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors (27-45), who outscored the Pistons 36-15 in the third quarter to take control.
Jonas Jerebko had 20 points for Detroit (24-49), which has lost 12 of its last 13 and eight straight at home. Rookie center Andre Drummond, making his first start, added 17 points after missing 22 games due to a stress fracture in his back.
Jose Calderon, Toronto's all-time assists leader who was traded by the Raptors to the Pistons on Jan. 30, had eight points and seven assists in his first game against his former team.
Toronto opened the second half with a 28-7 run to take a 22-point lead. Johnson made a layup to give the Raptors their first double-digit advantage, 58-48. Gay converted a lob from Kyle Lowry for a dunk and Lowry followed with a fast-break layup after a Kyle Singler turnover, making it 64-50.
Gay then knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, sandwiching two DeRozan baskets, for a 74-52 Raptors lead. The Pistons never got closer than 16 the rest of the way.
Detroit's third-quarter woes were not an aberration. It has been outscored by an average of 12.3 points in the third quarter over the last seven games.
Johnson and Valanciunas shot a combined 13 of 14 from the field for 28 points in the first half to give the Raptors a 46-45 halftime lead.
Drummond provided an immediate lift for the Pistons, scoring six points in the first six minutes as they led by as much as 10 in the quarter. When he re-entered in the second period, he halted an 8-0 Raptors run with a dunk and added two more during the quarter.
NOTES: The Pistons were eliminated from the playoffs when Milwaukee defeated the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday. ... Pistons reserve guard Will Bynum missed his second consecutive game with a right hand strain. ... Detroit plays six of its last nine on the road. ... Toronto had lost four straight at The Palace. ... ... The Raptors were giving up an average of 106.2 points during their five-game losing streak. ... Pistons coach Lawrence Frank said he was on the verge of starting Drummond before Drummond injured his back. "This is a transition that was earned by Andre," Frank said. "It wasn't given to him, it was earned. It's unfortunate that he had to miss 22 games." ... Calderon led the league in 3-point shooting entering the game at 46 percent. Atlanta's Kyle Korver ranked second at 45.6 percent. Calderon's previous career high was 42.9 percent in 2007-08. ... The teams, who will play again in Toronto, have a combined eight rookies on their rosters. ... A '90s theme night at The Palace included performances by R&B vocal group Color Me Badd and TV star Luke Perry.
