DETROIT — Maybe Pistons coach Dwane Casey has the Raptors figured out.
The Pistons haven’t had a lot of wins this season, but two of their most impressive ones have come against Casey’s former team.
After notching an impressive 24-point win against the Raptors on March 3, the Pistons followed it up with a good shooting performance, with good defense and good 3-point shooting. The Pistons put it together for a 116-112 win over the Raptors on Wednesday night at Little Caesars Arena.
It’s the fifth win over the Raptors for Casey as Pistons coach, including a three-game season sweep in 2018-19. The third meeting this season is March 29 at LCA.
Saddiq Bey had one of his best games of the season, with 28 points and tied his season high with 12 rebounds. Jerami Grant added 23 points and Delon Wright 18 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Pistons (11-29), who ended their four-game losing streak.
They made it interesting in the final minutes, though.
The Pistons looked to be in control with a 105-96 lead at the 3:42 mark of the fourth quarter, following a steal and lay-in by Josh Jackson (16 points, five rebounds and six assists). The Raptors (17-23) rattled off seven straight points, with two baskets by Chris Boucher (21 points). Jackson hit a big 3-pointer to push the lead to six, before fouling out on the next play.
The Raptors kept putting pressure on the Pistons and looked to create a cushion, with a six-point lead with 39.3 seconds left, but Norman Powell (43 points) hit a 3-pointer and was fouled. Powell missed the free throw and the Pistons held a 112-109 lead.
Grant created some more space with a fadeaway jumper while falling down, for a five-point margin with 7.7 seconds left, but Powell answered with another 3-pointer.
Bey finished it off with a pair of free throws for the final margin.
