Harris, Morris power Pistons past Lakers
LOS ANGELES -- Tobias Harris and Marcus Morris scored 23 points apiece, and the Detroit Pistons snapped a three-game losing streak with a 102-97 defeat of the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night at Staples Center.
Center Andre Drummond collected 15 points and 17 rebounds for the Pistons (19-24), who ended a six-game skid at Staples. Reggie Jackson chipped in 16 points and five assists for the Pistons.
Lou Williams delivered 26 points off the bench for the Lakers (15-3), who lost their fourth in a row and sustained their eighth setback in 11 games. Los Angeles guards D'Angelo Russell contributed 20 points and seven assists and Jordan Clarkson had 16 points.
Both teams struggled offensively in the third quarter, combining to score 31 points in the period as Detroit led 75-72 heading into the fourth. The two teams exchanged leads for much of the fourth before 3-pointer by Morris gave the Pistons a 93-91 lead. They never trailed again.
Brandon Ingram made one of two free throws to cut the gap to 96-95, but a 3-pointer by Harris with 30.5 seconds left gave the Pistons a four-point advantage. Free throws by Jackson from that point on helped the Pistons clinch the win.
The Lakers roared out to an 18-4 after 3-pointer by Nick Young with 5:22 remaining in the first quarter. However, the Pistons chipped away at the lead and sliced the advantage to 31-23 after one quarter.
In the second, the Pistons outscored the Lakers 36-26. Drummond ended the half in dramatic fashion by intercepting a long pass by Russell for Ingram and then banked in a 3-pointer from 62 feet to lift the Pistons to a 59-57 lead at the break.
The Lakers outshot the Pistons 50 percent to 48 percent in the first half. However, Detroit converted 7 of 14 (50 percent) from 3-point range compared to 3 of 11 (27.3 percent) for Los Angeles.
For the game, the Pistons shot 43.2 percent to 43.4 for the Lakers. Detroit hit 9 of 25 (36 percent) 3-pointers to 6 of 26 (23.1 percent) for Los Angeles.
The Pistons played without guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for the second game in a row. Pope suffered a Grade 2 left rotator cuff strain against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday.
NOTES: Lakers F Brandon Ingram was shooting 55.1 percent (27 of 49) from the floor and 56.3 percent (9 of 16) from 3-point range in the previous seven games. ... Pistons C Andre Drummond averaged 17.5 points and 16 rebounds in a split of the two games last season. ... The Lakers recalled C Ivica Zubac from the Los Angeles D-Fenders on Sunday. ... Los Angeles was 13-3 against Detroit in games played at Staples Center entering the contest. ... The Pistons were tied with the Dallas Mavericks for second best in the NBA in turnovers per game at 11.5 before the contest. The Lakers were knotted at 22nd with the Oklahoma City Thunder at 14.4 per outing. ... The two clubs meet again Feb. 8 at Detroit. ... The Lakers host the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday. ... The Pistons return home to face the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.