Outmanned Sixers fall to Detroit

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - If you can't be bigger, be faster. If you can't be stronger, be more athletic.

Those were the thoughts of the 76ers on Wednesday as they headed to Detroit to face beastly center Andre Drummond without the services of Jahlil Okafor, who was home in Philadelphia recovering from the flu. And that scheme directly fell on the thin shoulders of Nerlens Noel.

So Noel ran the floor endlessly and beat the 280-pound Drummond to the rim. He used his quickness to be on the receiving end of the now-expected lob pass from Ish Smith numerous times. He made precision passes and altered some shots in finishing with 20 points, seven boards and four assists.

And there to be his athletic sidekick was Jerami Grant, who seemed to hover around the rim offensively all night in collecting a career-high 21 points to go with eight rebounds.

But bigger and stronger ultimately won out as Drummond powered his way to 25 points and 18 rebounds in leading the Pistons (25-21) to a 110-97 win. The Sixers, who played at home on Tuesday night, simply were sapped of any energy in a fourth quarter in which they scored only 18 points after entering it with a five-point lead.

Smith finished with 13 points and six assists, while Hollis Thompson collected 12 points off the bench.

Reggie Jackson scored a game-high 27 for the Pistons.

"It's natural to feel fatigued (late), but I thought we looked good tonight," Noel said. "We were moving the ball well. The first half, we were playing exceptionally well but the scoreboard didn't show it. We made a couple turnovers at bad times to keep it close (45-44). It's on us to play the whole game and finish up the fourth quarter."

The Sixers came into the Palace at Auburn Hills with some serious disadvantages. Joining Okafor in Philly was JaKarr Sampson, also felled by illness. Elton Brand, who has yet to see action, didn't make the trip to attend to a family matter, and Isaiah Canaan was playing far less than 100 percent because of soreness in his wrist and ankle.

Despite that, they put forth one of their most solid efforts of the season, until they turned it over six times after the score was tied at 88-88 with 6:48 to play. Up to that point they protected the basketball for the most part (eight of their 17 turnovers coming in the fourth), ran precision halfcourt sets and inbounds plays that led to easy baskets.

But the heavy legs, trimmed roster and the monster that is Drummond simply wore them down. Still, a positive effort.

"I think we did a good job of gutting out most of the game," coach Brett Brown said. "We played three games in four nights. It's life in the NBA. It's good for our young guys to figure that out, and I think they did. (The Pistons) walked down a game at home and found that edge at the end. I though for about 42 minutes we were right there. Both Nerlens and Jerami, when we start talking about bodies and backing it up, it's an example for them of understanding the importance of that. They were excellent. Both of those two were elite tonight a lot of the game, athletic especially.

"Look at the ground that (Noel) can cover and look at the quickness of his hands and the speed of his feet. And I can't believe what I see sometimes out of Drummond. I have the utmost respect for his commitment to rebounding. As a big man he, too, runs. But Nerlens is faster and we have to take our advantage in where you can't hit what you can't catch. As a team we have to gang rebound. It can't be just on Nerlens trying to box out a roller who we say is the best offensive rebounder in the gym. We are beaten up, but so is the rest of the league."

It might be one of the only ways Brown can compare his young squad to any other team in the league, as the Sixers lost for the 40th time in 47 games, largely because of being outscored by 15 points at the foul line (Detroit 27-for-38 to 12-for-17 for the Sixers). As has been overly stated, progress for this team isn't measured in wins right now. So in that regard, Wednesday's performance was a good one.

"I think they're playing at a really good pace up and down the floor," said Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy. "They have shot the ball well, which helps every team. They're really getting (Robert) Covington and Hollis Thompson going from three, but they've also got (Isaiah) Canaan and (Nik) Stauskas who can shoot the ball. Both their point guards are really creating shots for people both in transition and off their pick-and-rolls. I think the pace has been a really big part of it at both ends of the floor, and I think they're playing with good energy, too."

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