Houston Rockets vs. Detroit Pistons game preview

Well, this looks familiar.

The Rockets and Pistons will complete their home-and-home series tonight, marking the first opponent that Houston will finish playing this season.

Winning both games of a home-and-home is generally a tough task. For one thing, the loser of the first game takes on the challenge as if it were a playoff series. They have an immediate opportunity to show that the first game was a fluke. Meanwhile, the team that won the first game usually lets up a little, thinking they are better than the other team. In this case, winning this game will be tougher for Houston given that it is in Detroit this time, rather than Houston.

Even if the game didn’t feel close in the second half, the final score should serve as a reminder to the Rockets that the Pistons are not to be messed with. Blake Griffin probably won’t hit every three pointer in the fourth quarter again, but Andre Drummond probably won’t have to deal with foul trouble either.

In the end, the keys are the same: Houston’s bigs need to hang with Detroit’s more than Detroit’s guards hang with Houston’s. And if the bench for the Rockets finds a way to contribute more tonight than Wednesday night, that would probably push this game towards the team in red.

Tip-off is at 6pm CT on NBA TV