With roughly a minute before halftime, the Detroit Pistons committed their 10th turnover in sloppy fashion. Isaiah Stewart attempted to inbound to Frank Jackson, but Jackson wasn’t paying attention and the ball bounced off his shoulder. Stewart picked it up and passed to Cory Joseph, but was whistled for a double-dribble.
It summed up Detroit’s night. The Pistons committed 18 turnovers for 24 Hornets points, and many of them resulted from careless passes and poor communication. It’s a recurring issue this season, and it was glaring against a Charlotte Hornets team that had a red-hot shooting night against the Pistons for the second time in 2021-22.
The Pistons lost their seventh straight loss, falling to the Hornets at Little Caesars Arena, 141-119. Charlotte shot 55.7% overall, including 42.9% from 3-point range, and topped 100 points with 4:25 left in the third quarter. The Hornets scored 140 against Detroit on Jan. 5, too.
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Charlotte clinched the game with a 22-9 run that started toward the end of the first quarter. The Pistons trailed by 24 points at halftime and struggled to contain the trio of LaMelo Ball (31 points, 12 assists, five rebounds), Terry Rozier (25 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds) and Flint native and Michigan State alumnus Miles Bridges (25 points), who shot a combined 29-for-48.
It was Detroit’s 15th straight loss to Charlotte. Saddiq Bey led the Pistons with 25 points, and Isaiah Stewart (15 points, 12 rebounds) and Killian Hayes (11 points and a career-high 12 assists) both tallied double-doubles. Hamidou Diallo added 12 points off the bench. The Pistons shot just 3-for-17 from 3 during the first half, and the game was already out of reach as they improved to 9-for-18 in the second half.
Poor first halves, along with turnovers, have also plagued Detroit this year. The Pistons outscored the Hornets by two in the second half, but were unable to close the deficit against an upstart Charlotte team in the thick of the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Cade Cunningham returns from five-game absence
The Pistons missed Cunningham, who exited their loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Feb. 1 with a right hip pointer, then sat out Detroit’s next five contests. It appeared he was on a minutes restriction and had some rust to work off, as he played 22 minutes and finished with 12 points, five rebounds and six turnovers.
It wasn’t reflected Friday, but the Pistons have been significantly better with Cunningham this season. They’re 11-31 with him this season, and 1-13 without. A chart from Bally Sports Detroit’s stats guru Austin Drake gives the full picture of Cunningham’s impact.
Cunningham will have two more games to find his rhythm before All-Star Weekend, as the Pistons play the Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics on the road next week.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @omarisankofa. The Free Press has started a new digital subscription model. Here’s how you can gain access to our most exclusive Pistons content. Read more on the Detroit Pistons and sign up for our Pistons newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons too sloppy in 141-119 loss to Charlotte Hornets
