Harris burns former team as Pistons rout Magic
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Tobias Harris scored 18 points against his former team and the Detroit Pistons opened up a 23-point halftime lead in their home opener and cruised to a 108-82 victory over the Orlando Magic on Friday at The Palace.
The former Magic forward added four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block for the Pistons, who shot 50.5 percent from the field. Point guard Ish Smith contributed 16 points and eight rebounds, forward Marcus Morrris had 17 points and center Andre Drummond powered for 12 points and 20 rebounds.
Beno Udrih and Aron Baynes added 13 points apiece off the bench for Detroit.
Forward Aaron Gordon had 17 points and seven rebounds and point guard Elfrid Payton chipped in 15 points and six assists for the Magic.
Reserve center Bismack Biyombo was held to two points and three rebounds in 23 minutes in his Orlando debut. Biyombo, signed to a four-year, $72M contract as a free agent this summer, served a one-game league suspension in the team's opener.
Both teams lost their season openers on Wednesday, with Detroit getting thumped by Toronto, 109-91, and Orlando falling to Miami, 108-96. The Pistons bounced back quickly by returning home, where they went 26-15 last season while making the playoffs for first time in seven years.
The Pistons outscored the Magic 30-9 in the second quarter and led 54-31 at halftime.
The Pistons started the quarter on a 20-2 run to take a 20-point lead. Morris gave Detroit a double-digit advantage with a dunk and a three-point play. Smith followed with a pull up jumper, a steal and layup, and finally a pass to Morris for a 3-pointer to make it 44-24.
Detroit shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's layup in the final minute made a 23-point advantage. Orlando shot 4-for-21 in the quarter and 13-for-47 (27.7 percent) for the half.
When Smith drained a turnaround jumper with 4:52 left in the third quarter, Detroit's lead was up to 30, 74-44. Udrih's 3-point shot in the closing seconds of the quarter made it a 35-point game, 86-51.
NOTES: Detroit won the previous six meetings with Orlando entering Friday's game, including a three-game sweep last season. ... Pistons SG Reggie Bullock missed his second straight game with back spasms. ... The Magic went 12-29 on the road the past two seasons. ... Orlando returns to The Palace on Dec. 4 for the second of four contests between the teams this season. ... Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said the team isn't distracted by the strong possibility that the team will move from Auburn Hills, Mich. to the city of Detroit in the Red Wings' new arena next season. "It's not on our radar," he said. Owner Tom Gores confirmed he's close an agreement to make it happen. "We're serious about making this move," Gores said ... Orlando completes a back-to-back against the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.