National Basketball Association
Detroit 108, Orlando 82
When: 7:30 PM ET, Friday, October 28, 2016
Where: The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan
Officials: #74 Curtis Blair, #55 Bill Kennedy, #60 James Williams
Attendance: 19122

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- The Detroit Pistons returned to the United States still smarting from the beating they took in Toronto. They made sure they didn't feel the same way about their home opener.

Tobias Harris scored 18 points against his former team and the Detroit Pistons opened up a 23-point halftime lead and cruised to a 108-82 victory over the Orlando Magic on Friday at The Palace.

Both teams lost their season openers on Wednesday, with Detroit getting thumped by the Raptors, 109-91, and Orlando falling to Miami, 108-96. The Pistons bounced back quickly by returning home, where they went 26-15 last season while making the playoffs for first time in seven years.

"The other night, all of us were a little discouraged, a little upset," said Harris, the former Magic forward who added four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block along with his team-high in points. "We were upset in a good way about the way we played. It was good to come out and get our first win, get the vibes up and know we can play this good. We've got to hold ourselves to this standard."

The Pistons shot 50.5 percent from the field and held the Magic to 34.7 percent. Detroit had a 53-44 advantage on the boards and outscored Orlando 60-36 in the paint.

Detroit took command by outscoring the Magic 30-9 in the second quarter.

"Couldn't have been much better," Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said of the second-quarter performance. "I thought even in the first quarter we made a couple of just mindless mistakes but overall, our defense throughout most of the night was really, really good."

Point guard Ish Smith contributed 16 points and eight rebounds, forward Marcus Morrris had 17 points and center Andre Drummond powered for 12 points and 20 rebounds.

Beno Udrih and Aron Baynes added 13 points apiece off the bench for Detroit.

Forward Aaron Gordon had 17 points and seven rebounds and point guard Elfrid Payton chipped in 15 points and six assists for the Magic.

"Obviously, we didn't start the right way and that was our issue, so we couldn't get back in the game," Magic guard Evan Fournier said. "The bottom line is we've got to find a way to start the game the right way and we've got to set a tone for ourselves that's going to carry over into the last quarter of the game."

New coach Frank Vogel, still looking for his first win with the Magic, preached patience afterward.

"The guys talked at halftime and we tried to band together, rather than separate and crack ... but it wasn't much better in the second half," he said. "It's early; it's game two. We'll get better."

Reserve center Bismack Biyombo was held to two points and three rebounds in 23 minutes in his Orlando debut. Biyombo, signed to a four-year, $72M contract as a free agent this summer, served a one-game league suspension in the team's opener.

The Pistons, who 54-31 at halftime, started the second quarter on a 20-2 run to take a 20-point lead. Morris gave Detroit a double-digit advantage with a dunk and a three-point play. Smith followed with a pull up jumper, a steal and layup, and finally a pass to Morris for a 3-pointer to make it 44-24.

"It was one of those times in the game when everything went the right way," Drummond said. "We didn't make any bad plays. Defensively, we were everywhere. Offensively, the ball swung around and we made all the right decisions."

Detroit shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's layup in the final minute made it a 23-point advantage. Orlando shot 4-for-21 in the quarter and 13-for-47 (27.7 percent) for the half.

When Smith drained a turnaround jumper with 4:52 left in the third quarter, Detroit's lead was up to 30, 74-44. Udrih's 3-point shot in the closing seconds of the quarter made it a 35-point game, 86-51.

NOTES: Detroit won the previous six meetings with Orlando entering Friday's game, including a three-game sweep last season. ... Pistons SG Reggie Bullock missed his second straight game with back spasms. ... The Magic went 12-29 on the road the past two seasons. ... Orlando returns to The Palace on Dec. 4 for the second of four contests between the teams this season. ... Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said the team isn't distracted by the strong possibility that the team will move from Auburn Hills, Mich. to the city of Detroit in the Red Wings' new arena next season. "It's not on our radar," he said. Owner Tom Gores confirmed he's close an agreement to make it happen. "We're serious about making this move," Gores said ... Orlando completes a back-to-back against the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday.
Top Game Performances
 
Orlando   Detroit
Aaron Gordon 17 Scoring Tobias Harris 18
Elfrid Payton 6 Assists Ish Smith 8
Nikola Vucevic 14 Rebounds Andre Drummond 20
Aaron Gordon 4 Free Throws Made Andre Drummond 2
Aaron Gordon 2 Steals Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 2
Bismack Biyombo 1 Blocks Jon Leuer 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Orlando 82 34.7 8-26 8-12 20 44 3 8 9
Detroit 108 50.5 7-19 5-6 27 53 4 8 12
Upcoming Games
  • Detroit will play their next game at home against Milwaukee. The Pistons have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Orlando will play their next game on the road against Cleveland. The Magic have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.