Detroit Pistons-Milwaukee Bucks preview

Winners of 12 of their last 15 the Detroit Pistons have turned their season around, for the time being. At 17-26 and one game back of the eighth and final playoff spot, Detroit looks to stay hot when the team travels to Milwaukee, to take on the Bucks.

This is the fourth and final time the two teams will meet this season. Detroit looks to tie up the season series after dropping the last two.

At the mid-way point of the season, this is a must win for Detroit. On the outside of the playoff picture looking in, it’s imperative the Pistons continues their winning streak and inch closer to grabbing the eight seed.

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It should be noted, the two losses Detroit suffered against the Bucks came with point guard, Brandon Jennings, sidelined with a sprained thumb.

The Pistons are coming off a season high in points (128) where everybody on the team seemed to flourish, While Milwaukee are on a two game slide, including their recent 101-99 loss to the Utah Jazz.

Home has not been kind to the Bucks recently. The team is just 2-6 in their last eight home games while Detroit has been sizzling on the road, going 7-1 in their last eight away from the Palace.

Both mirror each other, essentially. Both teams are stocked with young talent and are looking to make a statement to the Eastern Conference and the rest of the league.  Both teams average 98.2 points per game while allowing a shade under 100 points per game.

Point guard Jennings will be key in tonight’s game. Since joining the Pistons, Jennings has averaged 19.4 points and 9.4 assist and with the hot streak he has been on recently only helps Detroit.

Jennings will have his hands full tonight as he faces former Piston, Brandon Knight who currently leads the Bucks in scoring (18.2), assist (5.1) and steals (1.6). So, guys like Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Singler and the bench will have to produce and not rely on one man.

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But Detroit will need their point guard to continue to get his teammates involved early, as he has been doing over his last ten games, averaging 8.3 assist per contest.

“A lot of them (assist) were lay-ups, Stan Van Gundy told the Detroit Free Press. “He drew in the guy in at the last-minute and dished the ball. It was a very, very good performance. Oustanding.”

While another 20/20 game is a long shot, if Jennings can do his job of getting his teammates involved early and finding a rhythm while limiting Knight, Detroit should roll to a win and finish the season series with the Bucks, 2-2.

Aside from the hot point guard match-up, Jennings out dueling Knight will not be enough to knock off the Bucks. In their first three meetings this season, the winner of the rebounding battle has won the game.

As the second rebounding team in the league, Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond should have a relatively easy time collecting rebounds as the Bucks are without center, Larry Sanders. Sanders is currently serving a 10 game suspension, without pay for violating the league’s anti-drug policy.

Milwaukee’s center’s Zaza Pachuila, Ersan Ilyasova and forward Giannis Antetokounmpo are not push over’s on the glass but, Drummond and Monroe should be able to handle the trio.

Game info:

Time: January 24^th, 7:30 p.m.

Where: Bradley Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

TV: FSD, NBA-TV