AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Will Bynum scored six of his 20 points in a late run and the Detroit Pistons went on to beat the Washington Wizards 96-85 on Wednesday night.
With the game tied at 76, but Bynum scored six straight points to give Detroit the lead with 3:23 to play. Jose Calderon made the lead nine points with a 3-pointer, and the margin was 11 before John Wall broke Detroit's surge.
Calderon led the Pistons with 24 points, while Greg Monroe finished with 16 points and 18 rebounds as Detroit rebounded from a lopsided home loss Monday to New Orleans
Emeka Okafor had 20 points and nine rebounds for the Wizards, while John Wall finished with 16 points and nine assists.
Monroe had 13 points and 11 rebounds in the first half, and became the first Piston to have eight straight double-double since Grant Hill had 10 straight in March of 1996.
Despite Monroe's efforts, the Wizards held a 45-44 lead at the half, and quickly expanded the margin in the third quarter. Wall attacked the basket, and both Calderon and Brandon Knight struggled to stay in front of him.
Wall didn't score much on his own, but he set up Okafor and Nene for easy baskets at the rim. Calderon and Monroe, though, were able to keep the Pistons in touch on the offensive end, and the Wizards led 68-65 going into the fourth.
The Pistons went up 71-70 on Charlie Villanueva's four-point play with 7:51 left, and Slava Kravtsov followed that with back-to-back baskets to help Detroit move the lead to six points. Washington scored the next six, tying the game and setting up the finish.
Notes: For the second time in three games, the Palace was nearly empty, with the lower deck less than half full and the upper deck only holding scattered families. The Pistons who have led the league in attendance several times since moving to Auburn Hills in 1989, but now lead only the Kings and Hornets. ... Knight will be Detroit's only representative at All-Star weekend, taking part in the Rookies vs. Sophomores game. Andre Drummond was also scheduled to play, but will sit out because of a back injury
