vs.
25-17		29-12
Amway Arena
7:00 PM
FSN Florida
Probable starters:
Carlos Arroyo	PG	Chauncey Billups
Maurice Evans	SG	Richard Hamilton
Hedo Turkoglu	SF	Tayshaun Prince
Rashard Lewis	PF	Antonio McDyess
Dwight Howard	C	Rasheed Wallace

Okay, here are my thoughts on the Portland game really quick: the Sentinel's headline the following morning was "Back on Track." As encouraging as it is to beat one of the league's hottest teams, getting too pumped about it will only put us on track for a butt-whipping tonight against the Pistons. The Trail Blazers were on the second night of a back-to-back and weren't aggressive offensively or defensively. So yes, it's a good win, but it didn't turn our season around by any means.

The Pistons clearly have our number, which is 9: the number of consecutive times they've defeated us. But there's no better time than the present to beat them: they're a mere 5-5 this month, and their last three losses have come at the hands of the sub-.500 Bulls, Kings, and Knicks. They appear to be mortal. Then again, they always get fired up to play us, so I don't know what to expect, except at least two buzzer-beating three-pointers from their starters. Detroit pulls miracle shots out of its ass comes up big at the end of shot-clocks and quarters better than any other team in the league, although that opinion is based on observation and not empirical data. Does 82games have anything on buzzer-beaters?

My Scrubway Scrub of the Game prediction: Rodney Stuckey. Wouldn't it be fitting that we somehow shut-down Billups or put him in foul trouble, only to see his backup drop a career-high on us, especially since his backup qas acquired via a draft pick we traded? That's about par for the course, right?

Brian Schmitz notes that Carlos Arroyo will start once again at point guard for Jameer Nelson, who hasn't recovered from his sore foot. Arroyo played 22 minutes against Portland and did not record a single assist. It's the first time in his career that he played 20-plus minutes without an assist. Weird.

Tipoff's at 7 PM on FSN Florida. For Pistons-centric reading, check out Detroit Bad Boys, Need 4 Sheed, and Pistons Nation.