It’s not the finish that they wanted, but the Pistons still wrapped up the season the way they started it, with a win.
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The 80 games in between didn’t quite go so well, as the Pistons missed the playoffs for the second straight season. They’ll start the long offseason with more questions than answers about their longterm future, but reveled in one last victory for the season.
Without three starters, the Pistons put together a good offensive performance, with 66 points in the first half, on the way to a 119-87 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night at United Center.
The Pistons finish the season at 39-43, in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, and they’ll miss the playoffs for the ninth time in the last 10 years.
BOX SCORE: Pistons 119, Bulls 87
Luke Kennard had a career-high 23 points, Anthony Tolliver 18, Henry Ellenson 14 points and 10 rebounds and Eric Moreland notched his second double-double of the season, with career highs of 16 points and 17 rebounds.
Blake Griffin (ankle), Andre Drummond (sore Achilles) and Reggie Bullock (knee soreness) all sat out the finale, but the reserves more than picked up the slack.
Tolliver started the game sizzling, scoring 13 points in the first 4:31, including three 3-pointers. The Bulls jumped ahead, 12-7, in the first four minutes, but Tolliver answered with back-to-back 3-pointers and a driving dunk.
That ignited a 15-0 run, with a hook by Moreland, two free throws from Kennard and a 3-pointer by Stanley Johnson (11 points), for a 22-12 lead. The Bulls ended the spurt with a putback by Lauri Markkanen (20 points and eight rebounds) for the Bulls (27-55).
The Pistons finished the quarter on a 13-5 run, with back-to-back jumpers by Kennard, followed by another 3-pointers from Tolliver. They led, 35-21, after the first period and continued to pour it on with their reserves in the second.
The lead ballooned to 46-27 in the first four-plus minutes, with back-to-back baskets by Ellenson and a 3-pointer and jumper from Ish Smith (13 points) and a dunk by Moreland.
The Pistons led, 66-50, at halftime and pushed the margin to 94-74 after the third quarter, with a 6-2 push in the final 1:40 of the period. The Bulls, pushing for a high pick in the draft, didn’t threaten in the fourth quarter.
Here are some other observations from the finale:
■Anthony Tolliver showed his expanded repertoire, scoring on reverse lay-ins, dunks, 3-pointers and flashed some ball-movement skills. He’s a free agent after the season and with the desire to develop some of the younger players at power forward, he could seek greener pastures elsewhere. If this was his finale, he acquitted himself well in the last few weeks of the season.
■With Drummond out, Eric Moreland played a career-high 41 minutes and got a very Drummond-like stat line (16 points and 17 rebounds). He showed better energy for a more sustained period and was aggressive in going to the basket. Defensively, he’s had some improvement this season and was lauded by coach Stan Van Gundy for his contributions as a role player.
■Kennard looked smoother in his offensive approach, getting to the rim and attacking the Bulls reserves. He got more playing time as the season wore on and seemed to get more comfortable in the role. He’ll have a bigger role next season, with some improvement in his game.
