Pistons 80 - 97 Rockets
Final
  for this game

Rockets entertain Pistons in South Texas

Jan 17, 2012 - 3:43 PM (Sports Network) - Things haven't exactly been going well for the Pistons this season.

The struggling team is set to take on a surging Houston club in South Texas on Tuesday, a difficult enough task considering Detroit is just 1-5 on the road this season.

But basketball took a back seat for Detroit when the team's chartered flight reported problems with the hydraulics operating part of the aircraft's landing gear, forcing an emergency landing.

Fortunately everyone escaped the scary situation unscathed and the Pistons will now try to halt the momentum of a Rockets team attempting to get back to the .500 mark on Tuesday.

Detroit comes in after losing for the seventh time in eight contests on Sunday in Auburn Hills, falling to Golden State 99-91.

Greg Monroe scored a game-high 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds in that one for the Pistons, who, at 3-10, are in the cellar of the Central Division. Tayshaun Prince added 20 points and Ben Gordon had 15 and six assists.

"They were just a step quicker, a step faster, a step more aggressive," said Pistons coach Lawrence Frank.

The Rockets, meanwhile, won their third straight game in the nation's capital on Monday after Kevin Martin posted 25 points and matched a career-high with eight assists to help Houston beat the lowly Washington Wizards, 114-106.

Samuel Dalembert had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Rockets, who improved to 6-7 overall on the season. Luis Scola added 18 points and Kyle Lowry scored 16 to go along with six assists, five rebounds and three steals.

Houston, which is a solid 4-1 at Toyota Center, open a three-game homestand tonight and will play seven of its next eight games on its home floor.

"We've started to settle down," said Lowry. "We've got a nice homestand coming so we've got to get those games at home."

The Rockets have won two straight and five of six overall vs. Detroit.






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