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Pistons-Nets Preview

Nov 29, 2015 - 5:51 AM Detroit is one of the worst offensive teams in the league, but it also happens to be one of the NBA's best rebounding squads. The result is a .500 record with five of its eight wins coming when shooting under 43.0 percent.

The Pistons got a taste of how ugly things would be if they lost that edge on the glass to begin the weekend, and they'll try to end it by recovering Sunday night in a visit to the Brooklyn Nets.

Friday's 103-87 loss in Oklahoma City came with the Thunder posting a 58-38 advantage on the glass after the Pistons (8-8) entered as the league's top rebounding team before matching a season-low total. League-leading rebounder Andre Drummond, who averages 17.1, finished with a season-low seven for his first single-digit total since the team's second-to-last game last season.

"That's something we should've been able to do a better job of," coach Stan Van Gundy told the team's official website. "We're minus-20 on the glass. I didn't think anybody on our team rebounded the ball at all."

Combine that with a team shooting mark of 34.4 percent, and the result is predictable. For the season, Detroit is shooting 41.3 percent and scoring 96.3 points. Reggie Jackson leads the way with 19.1, but he was held to 15 on 4-of-16 shooting. When he scores over 20, the Pistons are 4-0. When he doesn't, they're 4-8.

"A combination of poor shooting in the second half - we couldn't buy a basket - and them really beating us up on the offensive glass," Jackson said. "It was definitely more evident in the second half, especially since we couldn't get a basket. It started wearing on us."

Brooklyn (3-13) could be the team to correct that against, but the Nets won two of three last season, and Detroit is 1-4 there since the Nets moved prior to the 2012-13 season.

The Nets also happen to be coming off a decent defensive showing against Cleveland, falling 90-88 Saturday after building a 50-44 halftime lead and watching LeBron James hit the game-winning shot with 1.1 seconds remaining.

"They made a tough shot at the end, but I thought we were pretty decent," Joe Johnson told the team's official website. "It's definitely frustrating for everybody in this locker room, because we work hard time and time again and we know we can put ourselves in position to be in the ball game or to win and we are coming up short."

They held the Cavaliers to 40.2 percent but had a mark of 40.7 themselves and made 4 of 17 from 3-point range. That puts them at 7 of 30 in the last two games, and their 29.5 percent season mark is the worst in the league.

It places all the more pressure on Brook Lopez inside, but he's making 49.0 percent of his shots for his lowest mark since the team was in New Jersey. Nevertheless, he's averaging 23.7 points in the last three games and went 10 of 15 for 22 against Cleveland.

Despite not having won consecutive games yet this season, the Nets do have a two-game home winning streak going after starting the season 0-3 at the Barclays Center.

Detroit has lost six of seven on the road after starting 3-0.