Auburn Hills, MI – Kemba Walker made big plays late in a 20- point scoring effort and the Charlotte Bobcats avoided another losing streak by beating the Pistons, 108-101, in overtime at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
Walker scored on a floater in the final seconds of regulation to force overtime and gave Charlotte a six-point cushion in the extra session with a reverse layup to help seal the victory.
"I'm just trying to make the best play possible," Walker said. "Whether it's a pass or making a basket. Tonight it was the basket that put us into overtime."
Bismack Biyombo totaled 10 points and 17 rebounds, while Ben Gordon and Ramon Sessions put forth strong efforts off the bench with 18 and 15 points, respectively, in the Bobcats' second win in three games.
Tayshaun Prince scored a game-high 21 points to go along with seven boards for the Pistons, who received 18 points apiece from Greg Monroe and Rodney Stuckey. Monroe also finished with 14 rebounds and six assists as the Pistons were denied their first five-game winning streak since 2009.
"They just kept coming and coming," guard Will Bynum said of the Bobcats. "Defensively, we weren't as sharp as we normally are. We've just got to go back to the drawing board and be better in that department."
During a closely contested fourth quarter, Gordon buried a 3-pointer to tie the game at 92-92 with 3:44 remaining in regulation.
After Prince later put in a hook shot from four feet out to give the Pistons a 96-94 lead, Detroit missed three shots on the possession prior to Walker's tying score to force overtime.
It was all Bobcats from there, outscoring the Detroit, 12-5, in the extra session. Thomas and Walker each scored buckets to open the period and Walker's clutch reverse layup later created a 104-98 edge with 1:13 remaining.
Stuckey knocked down a difficult 3-pointer to make it 104-101, but Michael Kidd-Gilchrist put the game on ice with a pair of free throws.
The Pistons had the lead early, taking a 30-21 advantage into the second quarter. After Charlie Villanueva strung together a trio of 3-pointers, Stuckey knocked one down from beyond the arc to put the Pistons on top, 58-45, with 4:48 remaining in the period.
However, the Bobcats responded using a 14-2 push, with Walker scoring back-to- back layups to close out the half and come within 60-59.
The Pistons built their lead back up to seven following a pair of layups from Brandon Knight near the midway point of the third, but the Bobcats once again finished the period strong and trailed, 82-79, going into the fourth quarter.
Game Notes
The Bobcats had 19 offensive rebounds and scored 25 second chance points ... The Pistons committed 22 turnovers, which turned into 26 points for the Bobcats ... The last time Detroit won five in a row was Dec. 4-12, 2009 ... The Bobcats ended a six-game slide to the Pistons with Sunday's victory.
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