Pistons post rare win, beat Hornets behind Bogdanovic's 34 points

Detroit — A lot has changed since the last time the Pistons faced the Charlotte Hornets.

The Pistons overwhelmingly beat the Hornets in Charlotte on Oct. 27, which was their first victory of the season. Since then, Detroit has only won three games while suffering 38 losses — including a 28-game losing streak.

Detroit was shorthanded in that previous matchup, but they were as close to full health for the first time this season as Monte Morris made his long-awaited season debut. This meeting's result was a more competitive game without much defense, and a similar outcome as the Pistons defeated Charlotte, 113-106, on Wednesday night at Little Caesars Arena.

Bojan Bogdanovic, who scored a game-high 34 points, tied the game at 106 with a clutch 3-pointer with 1:46 left. The veteran forward drove to the basket on the next possession and missed, but Jalen Duren followed it up with an easy layup to give the Pistons a two-point lead with a little over a minute remaining.

In the game's waning seconds, Killian Hayes made the play of the game and penetrated the paint and found Duren for a two-handed slam, which gave the Pistons enough separation to clinch their fifth win of the season.

With the win, the Pistons improved to 5-39, while the Hornets dropped to 10-32.

Bogdanovic scored 28 points through the first three quarters of the game, but couldn't sustain that same offensive firepower early in the fourth quarter and missed his first five of his shots in the final period until he sank the triple to tie the game at 106.

"It's a great feeling after many games lost in a row," Bogdanovic told Johnny Kane of Bally Sports after the game.

Isaiah Stewart returned to the starting lineup and finished with 11 points and eight rebounds and made a sound defensive play in the clutch as he broke up an alley-oop attempt with 1:28 left.

Morris made his season debut off the bench on Wednesday after missing the last 43 games due to a right quad strain. He was on a minutes restriction and finished with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting, along with two rebounds and three assists in 11 minutes of action.

With Morris running the offense in the third quarter, the Pistons went on a 10-0 run in a short span of a minute and 53 seconds. He knocked down a midrange jumper and atrracted enough attention inside the paint to find Killian Hayes for a rare 3-pointer. However, Hornets rookie Brandon Miller caught fire and nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to spearhead a 14-3 run for Charlotte. Miller led the Hornets with 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

"It's fun. I told everybody it's like the first day of school for me," Morris told Kane at halftime. "I'm able to go out there, have fun and just play basketball again."

The Pistons took a timeout with 3:40 left after Hornets center Nick Richards grabbed an offensive rebound and threw down a two-handed dunk with authority. The game was for the taking as Detroit trailed by two points with 2:48 left. Neither team could score until Caleb Martin went to the free-throw line for a couple of freebies to extend Charlotte's scoring run to 10-0.

Alec Burks, who totaled 15 points off the bench, knocked down a timely triple with 2:10 left to bring the Pistons within one, but LaMelo Ball found Richards for an explosive alley-oop.

The Hornets were shorthanded without the services of Terry Rozier, who was traded to the Miami Heat on Tuesday in exchange for Kyle Lowry and a 2027 first-round draft pick. Lowry wasn't available, Miller, Richards (21) and Flint native Miles Bridges (20) shouldered the scoring load for the Hornets. The Pistons' last three wins have come against teams who have made trades either the day-of or day-before the game (Toronto; OG Anunoby, Precious Achiuwa; Washington; Mike Muscala, Danilo Gallinari).

Cade Cunningham was originally listed as probable for Wednesday's game after missing the last two weeks due to a left knee strain, but was downgraded to questionable after the team finished shootaround. He did not play because of his conditioning, according to Pistons coach Monty Williams.

The Pistons will continue their six-game homestand on Saturday against the Washington Wizards, which marks the return of Marvin Bagley III and Isaiah Livers.

mcurtis@detroitnews.com

@MikeACurtis2