Pistons at Cavaliers
The Detroit Pistons will try to follow an impressive homestand with a successful road trip, which begins Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. After averaging 74.5 points in a pair of road losses to begin last week, the Pistons knocked off the Los Angeles Lakers at home by 14 points and then completed a sweep of their three-game season series against Toronto with a 110-107 triumph at Little Caesars Arena on Sunday.
Blake Griffin scored 25 points and hauled in eight rebounds in Sunday's victory as the Pistons stayed ahead of Brooklyn in the race for the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference. "My message in there was not getting happy on the farm and getting excited," Detroit coach Dwane Casey told reporters of the postgame vibe following his team's 14th win in 18 games. "We have to play perfect basketball." The Cavaliers are losers of three straight and five of their last six after capping a winless road trip with a 121-116 loss at Dallas on Saturday. They've dropped the first three meetings with the Pistons this season, including a 129-93 home setback earlier this month.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FS Detroit, FS Ohio (Cleveland)
ABOUT THE PISTONS (36-33): Andre Drummond finished Sunday's win with 15 points and 17 rebounds for his 21st double-double in the last 22 games, which includes one he registered in just 26 minutes at Cleveland on March 2. Reggie Jackson posted his second straight 20-point performance in the victory over Toronto after scoring a total of 14 points in his previous two contests. Griffin is averaging 20.3 points on 62.9 percent shooting, along with 9.7 rebounds and 5.7 assists, versus Cleveland this season.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (17-53): Cedi Osman made 6-of-7 3-pointers at Dallas while Collin Sexton was 4-for-7 from beyond the arc, but the rest of the team went 5-for-24 and there was a lack of execution on the other end of the floor. "I think we took a huge step back defensively," forward Kevin Love told reporters. "We've been looking at film, but when we're not scoring that ball, it's almost like we're giving up on the defensive end." Sexton has scored at least 23 points in five straight games, shooting 55.7 percent in that span.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Drummond on Sunday became the eighth player in NBA history with at least six straight seasons of 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
2. Love has recorded a double-double in each of his last five home games.
3. Pistons SG Luke Kennard attempted only one shot in 28 minutes on Sunday after shooting at least seven times in each of his previous 11 contests.