

Griffin rises to the moment in final minute as Pistons pull out big win over Heat

Should we start with Ish Smith? Yeah, let’s start with Ish Smith and his season-high 25 points and the clinching triple – from a guy shooting 22 percent from the arc for the season – as the Pistons beat Miami 111-107 for their third straight win to keep them perfect since the trade for Blake Griffin.
And then we go to Griffin, who had missed all five of his triples – and 13 of his 18 shots overall – until stroking one with 44 seconds left to give the Pistons a seven-point lead. It was Griffin who made the play – with the Pistons up three and trying to wind the clock down – one possession after that big that to produce the Smith triple with 14 seconds remaining.
Don’t worry. We can go through everybody and it won’t take long. Missing his backcourt reserves, Luke Kennard and Dwight Buycks, Stan Van Gundy used only seven players in the second half.
They all made enough happen for a win that keeps the Pistons surging from the rear in the Eastern Conference playoff race after a 3-12 swoon following Reggie Jackson’s injury dropped them from fourth in the standings to ninth. Saturday’s win pulled them within a half-game of Philadelphia for the final playoff berth.
“It’s a sense of urgency on this team,” Andre Drummond said. “Really excited with the addition of Blake. Just the energy in the locker room has been great. You can see the chemistry starting to build and the sky’s the limit from here. Keep getting those wins and keep making this playoff push.”
Before we go any further, we should probably spend a second more on Drummond. All he did was compile a double-double in each half – 11 points and 10 boards in the first, 12 points and 10 boards in the second – while also amassing four steals and four blocks. The last time anyone had numbers as good or greater in those four categories? Hakeem Olajuwon in 1989.
Stanley Johnson, after three straight strong games, made it four despite not getting much done in the first half. But 11 of his 13 points and five of his seven rebounds came after halftime and he helped Van Gundy overcome his depleted perimeter but doing a creditable job guarding Goran Dragic, Miami’s All-Star point guard, down the stretch.
“I just see a lot more opportunity,” he said. “With Blake involved, he creates so much attention it’s, like, crazy. It’s easy to turn the corner sometimes with him. With Andre out there, we’ve got two guys who are crazy lob threats. It’s kind of ‘pick your poison’ sometimes.”
Smith played almost 40 minutes – he added seven assists and a single turnover to his 25 points – but the Pistons held their own while he sat as Langston Galloway backed up both Smith and Reggie Bullock. He finished with 13 points and four assists, committing just one turnover.
Anthony Tolliver played 28 minutes off the bench, including the entire fourth quarter, many of them out of position at small forward in a tough matchup with Josh Richardson. Tolliver matched Galloway’s 13 points, hitting 3 of 5 triples, and chipped in five of the Pistons 49 rebounds as they dominated the glass with a plus-16 margin.
Though the Pistons scored eight points above their season average against the NBA’s No. 7 defensive team – they hit 14 of 18 shots in the fourth quarter and 4 of 6 triples in scoring 35 points – Van Gundy blamed himself for not devising an offense that helps Griffin more.
“I’ve got this great player now and we’re playing to him all the time and the defense is all loaded up,” he said. “Blake felt the same way talking to him after the game. We just need to play and get the ball moving and he’ll find his way. I thought I made it really tough on him and our team today offensively.”
Griffin matched Smith’s seven assists and added nine rebounds. He admitted to fatigue after a whirlwind week that saw him uprooted and thrown into the middle of a playoff chase with a team that’s putting its fate largely in his hands.
“A little more tired today,” he said. “The adrenaline wore off a little bit (from) just the toll of the week. It’s amazing to see all these guys step up and play so well. Andre was unbelievable tonight. Ish, Langston – you can go on down the line and name a big play or big moment everybody had. This was the true definition of a team win to me.”