Miami — Circumstances were different for the Pistons this time compared to their previous trip to Miami.
Detroit had a clean slate when it opened its season on the road at Kaseya Center in October, nearly escaping with a victory against the defending Eastern Conference champions. Four months and 51 losses later, the retooled Pistons faced the Heat, a team on a late-season surge toward the playoffs.
The Pistons were playing out of pride. The Heat played for playoff positioning. The result, however, was the same as before: a competitive game that tilted in Miami’s favor.
Detroit (9-52) suffered a 118-110 loss to Miami to extend its losing streak to three games.
Simone Fontecchio brought the Pistons within three points after connecting on his fifth 3-pointer of the night with 1:15 left. However, Jimmy Butler called his own number and made back-to-back clutch shots to beat the Pistons once and for all.
“Just a couple of bounces that didn’t go our way,” Pistons coach Monty Williams said. “We fouled out and it changed our rotation a little bit. We had some wide open looks and we just couldn’t knock them down. I’m just frustrated that we lost, but I’m not frustrated that effort. I thought we were a lot better tonight, handling some of the calls that didn’t go our way. … They just made a couple of well-timed 3s after turnovers. It was a heist -head.
The game was up for grabs in the final minutes of the game as Detroit trailed by three with 2:22 left after Jaden Ivey connected on a tough mid-range double-clutch shot. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham then found Jalen Duren, who had been fouled by Butler. A few free throws later, Detroit lost by one point.
Terry Rozier gave the Heat a three-point lead after a strong drive to the basket and Ivey tried to counter with a drive of his own, but he turned the ball over.
Duncan Robinson, who finished with 18 points, took advantage of the opportunity with a transition 3 to give the Heat a 111-105 lead with just over two minutes remaining. From then on, it was the Butler show. Butler scored 15 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter.
Cunningham scored a team-high 23 points to go with four rebounds and eight assists for the Pistons. He connected on four of his eight attempts from beyond the 3-point line.
“We fought hard, man,” Cunningham said. “I felt like we were going back to a one-possession game and they were going to stretch it. We would get one possession back and they would stretch it. We could never tie it and get over that hump.”
Fontecchio led the Detroit bench with 22 points on 5 of 12 from 3. Isaiah Stewart added 13 points and six rebounds. Ivey’s shooting struggles continued as he failed to make any of his five 3-point attempts. He finished with 16 points, including a timely and-1 to bring Detroit within three with 4:16 to play.
Miami didn’t need to rely solely on Butler. Six different players reached double figures for the Heat. Adebayo had 18 points and seven rebounds. Rozier added 17 points and seven assists. Caleb Martin added 15 points. Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 11 points and six rebounds.
Evan Fournier, who just scored a season-high 17 points, didn’t have the productive night he had against Orlando on Sunday. He struggled from the perimeter and missed all five of his 3-point attempts until he buried a go-around triple in the fourth quarter to bring the Pistons within four. He only totaled seven points coming off the bench.
The Pistons will return to Detroit to prepare for a six-game homestand, starting with Thursday’s matchup against the Brooklyn Nets.
@MikeACurtis2
