2024-01-03

Detroit Pistons go cold late, fall in overtime to Utah Jazz, 154-148

Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press

---

SALT LAKE CITY — The Detroit Pistons led for most of the first four quarters.

But they couldn’t hit shots when it mattered most.

The end result? A 154-148 overtime loss to the Utah Jazz in the second leg of a four-game road trip. Jordan Clarkson, who led all scorers with 36 points, ultimately hit the dagger 3-pointer with 1:44 remaining in the extra session that pushed Utah’s lead to seven. The Pistons shot just 2-for-9 in overtime after shooting a season-high 56.8% through the first four periods. Detroit led the entire first half and for 18 minutes and 17 seconds of the second half.

Cade Cunningham hit a 3-pointer with 7.5 seconds left in overtime to bring the Pistons within three. But Killian Hayes, who checked in for defensive purposes, committed a foul on Collin Sexton before Utah could inbounds the ball.

It gave Utah a free throw and the ball back, ending Detroit’s hopes of forcing a second overtime.

The Pistons got strong performances from Bojan Bogdanovic (36 points, 8-for-15 from 3), Cunningham (31 points, 12 assists) and Alec Burks (27 points, 23 in second half). Jalen Duren also had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Clarkson led Utah with 36 points.

Detroit had a chance to put the game away with less than three minutes remaining in the fourth, but Burks missed an open 3, keep the Pistons’ lead at four. Bogdanovic and Burks went cold late, missing shots on four consecutive possessions to allow Utah to tie the game at 132. But the veteran duo came through in the final 20 seconds to send the game into overtime.

A game of horse

The fourth ended with a wild sequence of shot-making. A 3-pointer by Clarkson gave the Jazz the lead with 31 seconds remaining. But Bogdanovic answered with a 3 with 14.9 left, knocking it down from deep after recovering the ball from a blocked 3 attempt by Isaiah Livers.

Lauri Markkanen (31 points) answered with a 3 with 4.4 seconds remaining. Burks proceeded to save the night, inbounding the ball to Livers and receiving it right back before hitting a deep pull-up 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie it at 138 and give Detroit another shot at victory.

Livers was inserted back into the starting lineup in place of Kevin Knox, and the third-year wing was key in the Pistons getting off to a hot start. He scored six of Detroit’s first 11 points — a 3-point play and 3-pointer — to help force an early Utah timeout after the Pistons built a seven-point lead.

That lead extended to 10 when, midway through the first, Ivey pushed the ball in transition and found Knox for a dunk. The Jazz cut it to one midway through the second, but Detroit answered with a Cunningham 3. The Pistons led for all 24 minutes of the half, and maintained momentum until the Jazz closed it with a 6-0 run that cut Detroit’s lead to 68-66 entering halftime.

Bogdanovic shines in familiar arena

Bogdanovic got a round of applause from the road crowd during pregame introductions. The veteran forward arrived in Detroit from Utah, where he played from 2019-22 and was a key part of the Jazz’s playoff runs, alongside Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert.

He clearly felt at home, scoring 15 points by halftime to help the Pistons stay in control — particularly during an extended stretch where Cunningham rested from the 2:48 mark of the first until the 7:54 mark of the second. He followed that by knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers to open the second half, and tying his season-high with his sixth 3-pointer of the night midway through the third.

His seventh 3, 20 seconds into the fourth, pushed Detroit’s lead back up to 112-104 and he helped send the game into OT with his final triple of the night with 14.9 seconds to go.

Burks helps Pistons regain control late

Cunningham came out firing in the third, hitting six of his seven shots for 15 points in the period. But it was also in the third that Utah took its first lead of the night, 93-92, with a Fontecchio 3-pointer at the 5:13 mark.

The two teams exchanged blows, with eight lead changes and a tie, until Burks put Detroit back on top with nine points in the final three minutes of the quarter. It was a vintage Burks stretch, as he made two tough finishes at the rim, a free throw and completed a four-point play to give Detroit a 109-104 lead entering the fourth.

Burks kept rolling in the fourth, pushing Detroit’s lead to eight again with a triple. His next 3-pointer gave Detroit some cushion, 124-118, with 6:40 on the clock after the Jazz briefly took the lead with an 11-2 run. His final 3 of the fourth was the 3 that sent the game into an extra period.