by Charlie O. Mallonee

The Detroit Pistons (10-23) won their fifth a game in row as they defeated the Sacramento Kings 114-95 in Detroit on Sunday night.

Detroit road the “hot hand” of guard Brandon Jennings who scored 35 points on just 21 shots. Jennings was five for eight from 3-Point range and a perfect two for two from the free throw line. Jennings accomplished all of this in just 30 minutes of playing time.

The Pistons as a team shot 49.5-percent from the field (45-91) and 12 for 31 (38.7-percent) from beyond the 3-point arc. Detroit out-rebounded the Kings 49-41. The Pistons had 12 second-chance points to just one for Sacramento.

DeMarcus Cousins posted another double-double (18 points, 15 rebounds) in the Kings losing effort. Darren Collison was the bright light for Sacramento scoring 17 points on just seven shots including going two for two from 3-Point range. Derrick Williams scored 12 points off the bench for the Kings playing well in uptempo situations. Rudy Gay was held to just 12 points.

The Kings(14-20) shot just 42.7-percent (32-75) from the floor and three for 15 from beyond the 3-Point line. Sacramento recorded 18 assists, nine steals and four blocked shots in the game.

Kings Head Coach Tyrone Corbin was disappointed in his team’s defensive effort, “To give up 90 points in three quarters, you can’t say you had good effort. To have 31,29 and 30 (points) in three consecutive quarters regardless of how well they shot the ball … we could have found a little more than that.”

Game Flow

Both teams started the game slowly. In the first quarter, the Kings shot a very poor 39.1-percent (9-23) and were 0-4 from beyond the 3-Point line. Detroit put up 27 shots but hit on just 10 of those opportunities for a 37.0 Field Goal Percentage. The Kings used a late 8-2 run to keep the game close in the opening frame. Jason Thompson, who returned to the Kings starting lineup, led the team with seven points in the quarter. Detroit led the Kings 24-22 after the first 12 minutes.

DeMarcus Cousins made his presence known early in second quarter. Cousins filled the lane taking charges and causing Jonas Jerebko to pick up three personal fouls early in the period. McCallum brought the Kings some needed energy off the bench. When the Pistons starters returned to floor, they began to pull away from the Kings. Detroit shot a blistering 52.4-percent from the field and went 4 for 11 from 3-Point range. Jodie Meeks led the Pistons with eight points and Anthony Tolliver added six. Cousins and McLemore led the Kings with seven points each. The Pistons led the game 55-46 at the half.

The Kings opened the third quarter with Darren Collison being fouled and going to the line sinking three free throws. Sacramento had a 5-0 run to open up the period. Collison hit the Kings first 3-Pointer of the game and it began to feel like Sacramento could make a run at taking the lead back. Derrick Williams came off the bench and brought energy to the floor for the Kings. Williams drove to the hoop for a lay-up and was fouled. He hit the free throw to cut the Pistons lead to one point, but Brandon Jennings came back to life scoring seven points in the last 2:37 to help Detroit go back up by six points, 84-78, at the end of the quarter. Jennings scored 15 for the Pistons in the period while Collison had 10, Gay 8 and Williams 7 for the Kings.

Ray McCallum opened the fourth quarter with a field goal for the Kings, but things went downhill quickly for Sacramento. The Kings were unable to put together any kind of run, and they shot very poorly (5-15, 33.3-percent) from the field. While the Kings faltered, the Pistons heated up shooting 11 for 21 (52.4-percent) from the floor and hitting four of nine from 3-Point range. The Kings had no second chance points and zero fastbreak points in the quarter. Brandon Jennings was a perfect 3-3 shooting, good for eight points while Drummond added seven points. Jodie Meeks and Caron Butler scored five points each. The Pistons outscored the Kings 30-17 in the final period.

Game Notes

Sacramento finished the four game road trip with a 1-3 record … the Pistons five game winning streak began after the team waived forward Josh Smith … Brandon Jennings’ 35 points was a season high … the Kings return to Sacramento for a six game homestand that begins on Wednesday with the Oklahoma City Thunder … Added note: Rookie forward Eric Moreland has undergone successful surgery to repair the torn labrum in his left shoulder. The surgery was performed the renown Dr. Arthur Ting. Moreland will begin rehab immediately and should be available for the NBA Summer League.