AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Blake Griffin had 24 points and 17 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers won their first road game of the season by beating the Detroit Pistons 109-88 on Friday night.
The Clippers hadn't won a road game since last March, a streak of 15 games, and were 0-11 this season.
Ryan Gomes added 18 points for Los Angeles, while Charlie Villanueva led the Pistons with 18. Detroit's starters scored just 29 points and pulled down two fewer rebounds than Griffin.
The Clippers led 51-46 at halftime behind 14 points and 11 rebounds from Griffin. Los Angeles could have had a bigger advantage, but 11 first-half turnovers led to 13 Detroit points.
The Pistons then extended a season-long trend of poor third quarters, getting outscored 29-16 as the Clippers took an 80-62 lead into the fourth.
The final period turned into a show for the Clippers, with the highlight being a 360-degree spinning layup by Griffin that brought the Palace crowd to its feet for one of the few times all night.
On the next Clippers possession, Villanueva was called for a flagrant foul for hitting DeAndre Jordan in the head on a layup attempt. John Kuester got a technical for arguing the call.
In the end, the Pistons became the first team to fail to score 100 points in a home game against the Clippers this season.
NOTES: Detroit forward Austin Daye missed the game with a strained hamstring, leading to a rare appearance on the active roster for DaJuan Summers. ... Pistons assistant coach Brian Hill picked up a technical foul for arguing a second-quarter call, and was almost ejected for continuing the discussion at halftime. ... The Clippers have now won two straight games at the Palace after a 13-game losing streak in Auburn Hills. They had never won by more than 16 points in Detroit.
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