Pistons bid to pick up steam in encounter vs. Bucks

The Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks got off on the right foot to start their NBA Cup campaigns.The teams will look to continue their good fortune at the other’s expense on Wednesday night when they meet in Milwaukee.”Madness” was the way Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff described his club’s recent stretch of nail-biting results. The Pistons have split their past four outings by a total margin of six points.Detroit dropped a one-point decision in Charlotte last Wednesday and recorded a one-point win over Atlanta two nights later on Cade Cunningham’s clutch basket and last-second block.A two-point loss to Houston followed on Sunday after Detroit failed to capitalize on two deliberately missed free throws. That preceded Tuesday’s 123-121 overtime victory against Miami.Heat star Tyler Herro atoned for missing a buzzer-beating base jumper at the end of regulation by sinking a 6-footer with 1.1 seconds left in overtime.The Pistons leveled the contest after Jalen Duren converted Cunningham’s inbound lob. Malik Beasley sealed the win by draining a pair of free throws after the Heat called an illegal, excess timeout.”That was madness,” Bickerstaff said. “But this is who they are, and we love every minute of it.”Their resolve, all the stuff they’ve been through — multiple times they could have given in, (and thought) ‘it’s too hard’. They (Heat) were making shots, we were turning it over, and over and over, instead of laying down, they bandied together.”Cunningham (21 points, seven rebounds, nine assists) again threatened a triple-double, while Beasley hit 5 of 11 shots from 3-point range to highlight his 21-point performance.There were challenges on the way, with Jaden Ivey fouling out and Tim Hardaway Jr. taken off the court in a wheelchair and treated for a head injury after twice colliding with Herro.Hardaway’s playing status is unclear.

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