AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — Reggie Jackson poured in 30 points and made nine assists to lift the Detroit Pistons past the Portland Trail Blazers 123-103 on Sunday at The Palace.
Jackson, who collected his seventh 30-point outing this season, was among six double-figures scorers for the Pistons (32-31) as they bounced back from a 102-89 loss to New York on Saturday. Marcus Morris had 19 points, All-Star Andre Drummond supplied 14 points and 18 rebounds and Tobias Harris contributed 16 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (16 points) and Reggie Bullock (11) were the other Detroit players to reach double digits. The Pistons shot 52.4 percent from the field (44 for 84) and 82.1 percent (23 of 28) from the free throw line.
Portland’s star point guard Damian Lillard, who scored 50 points at Toronto on Friday, had a team-high 26 points but shot 8-for-22 from the field with six turnovers. Backcourt partner C.J. McCollum added 22 points and five assists for the Trail Blazers (33-31), who have lost three straight.
The Pistons won the first meeting on Nov. 8, 120-103, by outscoring the Trail Blazers 41-11 in the fourth quarter. This time, they never trailed while leading by double digits most of the way.
Jackson’s transition layup early in the third quarter gave the Pistons a 67-51 lead. Portland soon cut its deficit to eight on a Meyers Leonard three-point play but couldn’t get any closer the rest of the quarter.
The Pistons carried an 85-75 lead into the fourth. They started the quarter with a 7-2 spurt, capped by a Morris 3-pointer, to make a 15-point spread. Harris’ 3-pointer with 6:05 left kept it that way at 104-89. The Pistons gradually nudged the lead to 23.
Detroit led by as much as 17 in the first quarter, then settled for a 58-51 halftime advantage. Jackson was the catalyst with 15 points and four assists.
Lillard got off to a slow start, scoring just two first-quarter points, but had 11 by the break despite shooting 3-for-9 from the field and committing six turnovers.
NOTES: Detroit PG Reggie Jackson, who scored a career-high 40 points against Portland in the last meeting, had just 19 combined points in the team’s previous two games with eight turnovers. “I don’t think he’s made good decisions,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. “Any time he’s playing with energy, we’re a lot better.” … Detroit plays its next four games on the road, then begins a season-long nine-game homestand. Portland completes in seven-game road trip at Washington on Tuesday. … Detroit hasn’t swept the two-game series since the 2005-06 season. … The Trail Blazers won five of the last seven meetings at The Palace. … Trail Blazers guards Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum are the third-highest scoring duo in the league behind only Golden State’s Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson and Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. “It’s a lot like when you play Golden State or any of the great backcourts,” Van Gundy said. “You can’t just try to take away one thing.”