DETROIT — The Detroit Pistons took a second straight loss Friday night against the Orlando Magic, playing an unsurprisingly contentious matchup between two of the most physical teams in the NBA.
It led to plenty of apparent irritation with how the game was officiated as Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff, star guard Cade Cunningham and Orlando’s Wendell Carter Jr. were all assessed technicals for arguing calls.
There were 51 combined fouls called and it was hard to track just how physical the officials were going to allow the teams to get both in and out of play.
“It is frustrating. The lack of consistency is what was on both ends of the floor,” Bickerstaff said after the game. “I’m not saying we were reffed any different than they were, but I mean there was no balance and no flow to the game of what was going to be deemed a call tonight. And I can go further, but I’ll stop.”
The Pistons were called for just three more fouls than the Magic. But there were some key moments that went against Detroit during the 112-109 loss.
Ausar Thompson picked up back-to-back fouls very early in the second half on some modest contact that saw him sit out a key portion of the game on four fouls.
It seemed clear the referees had a hard time keeping the game under control as there were small chips throughout the night, including a brief shoving exchange between Cunningham and Orlando’s Desmond Bane.
The night hit a boiling point when Cunningham didn’t get a call on an apparent grab from Anthony Black while he was trying to move around a screen.
With no whistle, Cunningham was handed a technical after getting emotional in an argument with chief referee David Guthrie. Bickerstaff had to hold back Cunningham, who was visibly upset by the call.
Guthrie has not been a friend to the Pistons recently as fans will probably remember him as the referee that missed the foul call on Josh Hart in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series last season with the New York Knicks.
Tim Hardaway Jr. appeared to be fouled by Hart trying to put up a last-second three-pointer from the corner. With no whistle, the Pistons lost the game, going down 3-1 in the series, eventually losing in six games. After the fact, Guthrie admitted they had missed the call.
The Pistons (15-4) will need to move on from the frustration quickly as there’s still plenty of season left and it continues Saturday night with a road game against the Miami Heat.