• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Blazers send Pistons to 13th straight loss

Dec 10, 2014 - 4:19 AM Auburn Hills, MI (SportsNetwork.com) - LaMarcus Aldridge's 23 points and 11 rebounds led the Portland Trail Blazers to another victory, a 98-86 triumph over lowly Detroit that extended the Pistons' losing streak to 13 games.

Wesley Matthews chipped in 19 points to Portland's fifth consecutive win overall and seventh straight on the road. Damian Lillard and Chris Kaman each finished with 14 points for the Blazers.

Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond each recorded double-doubles in Detroit's latest setback, the Pistons' 10th in a row at home. Monroe tallied 22 points and 10 rebounds, with Drummond racking up 15 boards to go along with 10 points.

The Pistons' 13-game skid is the franchise's longest since it also dropped 13 straight from Dec. 15-Jan. 11 of the 2009-10 season.

"Confidence may be a problem; our play is a big problem," Pistons head coach Stan Van Gundy said. "Our defense has to have a lot more resolve, but I think the vast majority of guys in there have not let go."

A strong finish to the first quarter helped spring Portland to this win, as the Blazers closed out the period on an 11-4 run to open up a 33-22 lead. Kaman deposited six points during the flurry, which Aldridge capped by burying a triple just prior to the buzzer.

Five straight points from Allen Crabbe had Portland up 42-27 early in the second quarter, and the Trail Blazers maintained a double-digit advantage for much of the frame before settling for a 55-46 lead at the break.

"We got off to a good start," Trail Blazers head coach Terry Stotts remarked. "We built a lead and, other than the run they made in the fourth, the stars came back and finished it off."

Portland steadily extended the margin during the third quarter and held an 81-64 lead early in the fourth, when Detroit suddenly came storming back to put the outcome in doubt.

The Pistons ripped off 13 consecutive points, with Monroe delivering six and Caron Butler four during the surge, and closed within 81-77 when the latter fed Monroe for a layup with 7:21 left.

Detroit came up empty on its next two possessions, though, as Portland scored seven of the next nine points and went up by an 88-79 count on a Lillard trey with just over five minutes to go.

A hook shot by Aldridge that was followed by Nicolas Batum's triple with 2:24 remaining put the Pistons away, with Batum's shot giving the Blazers a 96-86 lead.

"I liked the way we finished it and took care of business the way we needed to," said Stotts.

Game Notes

Aldridge now has 11,347 points as a Blazer, moving him past Terry Porter (11,330) for second place in franchise history ... Portland improved to 10-0 against Eastern Conference teams this season and is an NBA-best 33-7 in such games since the start of the 2013-14 campaign ... The Pistons fell to 1-10 versus the West ... Detroit point guard Brandon Jennings managed just one point in 20 minutes while going 0-of-5 from the field. He's averaged only four points while shooting 5-of-32 over the Pistons' last four contests ... Aldridge compiled his sixth straight double-double ... Butler finished with 13 points off the bench.