Pistons roll past Heat 128-111 as Miami falls to 0-2 despite Giannis Antetokounmpo's 36

The Detroit Pistons scored the first 11 points, led wire-to-wire and kept Miami’s defense searching for answers. John Collins scored 23 points, Paul Reed added 19 off the bench, and the Pistons beat the Miami Heat 128-111 on Friday night, Oct. 23, in Miami.

Detroit is 2-0 for the first time since 2018-19, the Associated Press reported. Miami is 0-2 for only the eighth time in its 39-year history. The win came with a cost, though: Detroit lost two key players to injuries during the game.

Detroit’s hot start

The Pistons jumped out 11-0 and then 17-2, with Collins and former Heat guard Duncan Robinson doing early damage, according to the Heat’s own recap. Detroit led 41-26 after one quarter and 65-53 at halftime.

Miami’s bench steadied things in the second quarter. The Heat’s recap credited a group of Davion Mitchell, Pelle Larsson, Bobby Portis Jr., Tim Hardaway Jr. and Nikola Jovic. The Pistons stretched the lead back to 21 in the third and took a 103-80 lead into the fourth. Miami never got closer than 14 in the final period.

The three-point gap

The biggest difference was behind the arc. The Heat’s recap put it plainly:

Robinson and Collins combined to go 10-of-16 from 3. Miami had more offensive rebounds, fewer turnovers, more free throws and more than 10 more shot attempts, the Heat’s recap noted, but couldn’t overcome the shooting gap.

Box score leaders

Davion Mitchell’s night

Mitchell was one of Miami’s bright spots. He scored 18 in 32:56, shooting 6-of-14 from the field, 3-of-9 from 3 and 3-of-5 at the line, according to FanDuel Research. The Heat’s recap said his pair of corner 3s in the first quarter started Miami’s push back into the game.

Pistons injury watch: Ausar Thompson and Jalen Duren

Detroit’s win came with two injury worries, per the AP:

• Ausar Thompson left in the third quarter after an awkward fall.
• Jalen Duren played only 10 first-half minutes before leaving with a right thigh issue.

Both were set to be evaluated further on Saturday, and there was no update on their conditions after the game.

Miami’s early defensive problems

The Heat have allowed a franchise-worst 259 points through two games and have been outscored by 42, the AP reported. Their opener was a loss to Minnesota in which Anthony Edwards scored 45, per the Heat’s recap.

The supporting cast struggled again. Bam Adebayo had four points on 2-of-6 shooting in 23 minutes, slowed by early foul trouble. Klay Thompson finished with six points on 2-of-11 shooting after missing all five first-half 3s.

The AP noted it is also the first time Antetokounmpo has played in his team’s first two games of a season and started 0-2.

“Two games are only two games,” the Heat’s Couper Moorhead wrote, “but this is not the way the HEAT, or any team, would have wanted to open the season.”

What’s next

• Heat: at the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday, the second night of a back-to-back.
• Pistons: at the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, then at the defending champion New York Knicks on Tuesday.

FAQ