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Vasquez leads Hornets over Pistons

Mar 2, 2013 - 4:53 AM New Orleans, LA (Sports Network) - Greivis Vasquez scored 13 points in the fourth quarter and led the New Orleans Hornets to a 100-95 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday.

Vasquez had 25 points and nine assists in the game for the Hornets, who came into the game off a 45-point loss against Oklahoma City on Wednesday.

Eric Gordon scored 21 points and Ryan Anderson recorded a double-double with 19 points and 13 rebounds.

Greg Monroe had a game-high 27 points and 10 rebounds and Brandon Knight added 22 points for the Pistons, who have lost four of their last five games. Kyle Singler and Jason Maxiell scored 10 points apiece.

"We couldn't contain their penetration, so that's one thing we have to do better," Monroe said. "We gave up some second shots and they got a few more loose balls."

New Orleans had an 89-82 lead with just over five minutes left in regulation. However, Detroit went on a 11-2 lead, capped with a dunk by Monroe, and had a 93-91 lead with just under two minutes to play.

The Hornets responded with two free throws by Vasquez, a foul shot by Gordon, and a layup by Anderson, and had a 96-93 lead with 1:01 left.

Maxiell had a huge dunk and was fouled by Anderson with 52.5 seconds to go, but couldn't make the free throw, as the Hornets held a 96-95 edge.

Vasquez's bank shot with 12.1 seconds left gave the Hornets a 98-95 advantage.

Rodney Stuckey attempted to tie the game with 4.9 seconds remaining, but missed a 3-point shot, and Al-Farouq Aminu grabbed the defensive rebound. He was then fouled by Singler and made both of his free throws to put the game out of reach.

Detroit started strong with a 14-4 run in the first five minutes of the game, but the Hornets would rebound and get within four, 27-23, at the end of the first quarter.

The Hornets got their first lead of the game, 35-33, with 6:58 left in the second quarter, thanks to a 3-pointer by Anderson. The quarter was competitive throughout before a layup by Knight gave the Pistons a 49-47 lead at halftime.

It was much of the same in the third until the final two minutes. Down 69-68, Austin Rivers made a driving layup to start a 6-0 run for the Hornets, capped by a 3-pointer by Anderson, and New Orleans had a 74-69 advantage entering the fourth.

"We had to grind tonight, we had to mix it up tonight. I thought our guys came out in the third quarter and did what they had to do; they played with a since of urgency and that was big for us," New Orleans coach Monty Williams said.

Game Notes

Gordon scored 18 points and Monroe had 16 points and seven rebounds in the first half alone ... Aminu had 14 rebounds for the game ... New Orleans swept Detroit in the regular-season series for the first time since the 2008-09 season.