Central Division foes will collide when the Detroit Pistons (24-44) challenge the Chicago Bulls (41-28) at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Action begins at 7:30 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 21 and can be seen on WGN and FSN-DET.
The Pistons are are hoping for a better outcome after their 94-83 loss to the 76ers on Wednesday. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was the game’s leading scorer with 20 points. The Bulls, meanwhile, are coming off a 103-86 win against the Pacers on Wednesday. Nikola Mirotic led the game in scoring by accounting for 25 points on 8-for-15 shooting.
Mirotic has upped his play for the Bulls, averaging 20.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.2 blocks, and 1.8 three-pointers over the past five games.
Both teams have won a game in the season series. The Pistons had the upper hand in the most recent game, a 100-91 win. Jimmy Butler was the top overall scorer in the game with 30 points.
The odds for Detroit and Chicago are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Pistons have gone 24-44 Straight Up (SU) and 32-36 Against The Spread (ATS). They have the same record SU and ATS against divisional opponents, going 5-7. Expect to see a lot of second-chance opportunities for Detroit in this matchup, which averages a league-best 13.1 offensive rebounds per game.
Over on the other bench, the Bulls have 41-28 SU and 31-38 ATS records. Against fellow division members, Chicago has a 7-5 SU and a 6-6 ATS record. The Bulls convert their free throws at a high percentage, ranking second in the league at .786. Moving on to Chicago’s defense, the Bulls have one of the best opponent three-point field goal percentages in the league at .331. Blocking shots is an area where Chicago has excelled. The Bulls average 6.0 blocks per game, making them one of the best in the league.
In their previous meeting this season, Detroit beat Chicago, but the win was not enough for them to overtake Chicago in the recent head-to-head series. Its record is now 3-7 SU over the most recent 10 meetings. With a 6-4 record, the Pistons have the advantage ATS. Detroit and Chicago both held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers twice over the last 10 games.
Predictions: SU Winner – CHI, ATS Winner – CHI
Notes
Detroit puts up an average of 97.8 points per game (ranked 20th), while Chicago allows 98.8 points per game (ranked 12th).
Detroit ranks 19th in points per home game with 100.3 points, while Chicago ranks 11th in points allowed on the road with 98.4.
When giving up fewer than 100 points, the Detroit Pistons have an 18-16 record. When they don’t reach the century mark, the Chicago Bulls have an underachieving record of 11-19.
The Detroit Pistons have an abysmal 6-28 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Chicago Bulls are 30-9 when they hit triple digits.
The Pistons have an offensive rating of 101.4 (ranked 19th). The Bulls rank 13th for their defensive rating of 101.9.
Chicago beats Detroit in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Bulls average 96.9 possessions and 1.040 points per possession, while the Pistons average 96.4 possessions with 1.014 points per possession.
Chicago has an average effective field goal percentage of 48.6%. Detroit is an abysmal 10-34 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Chicago Bulls make 21.5 assists per game and the Detroit Pistons make 21.1. Chicago is ranked 16th, while Detroit is ranked 19th.
The Detroit Pistons average 4.5 blocks per game for a rank of 19th. The Chicago Bulls rank higher (fifth), earning 6.0 blocks each contest.
Detroit is the top-ranked team in terms of offensive rebounds. On the other side, Chicago is a very strong team when it comes to defensive rebounding, ranked sixth.
The Detroit Pistons make an average of 7.7 steals per game. When the Chicago Bulls allow 7 or more steals, they are a solid 28-16.
