Detroit Pistons (23-35) at Washington Wizards (33-26), 7 p.m. (ET)
(SportsNetwork.com) - The Washington Wizards are sinking like a stone, but they'll try to rebound on Saturday when the Detroit Pistons pay a visit to the Verizon Center.
The Wizards have lost six in a row and are 2-11 in their last 13, including back-to-back home setbacks to the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Washington has fallen hard in the Eastern Conference standings. The Wiz stand a half-game ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks, who could have tied them with a road win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.
Against the Sixers, who snapped a five-game losing streak, John Wall scored 21 points on 26 field-goal attempts with 11 assists, and Otto Porter contributed 19 points.
Ramon Sessions chipped in 14 off the bench for a Wizards team that shot 32.3 percent from the field.
"You gotta keep playing. There is frustration out there. No question. We need guys to step up," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said.
Washington was without starters Bradley Beal (stress reaction in lower right leg) and Paul Pierce (bruised right knee) as well as key bench contributor Kris Humphries (strained left hamstring).
The Pistons have dropped two in a row and have fallen one game off the pace for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference, which is currently held by the Indiana Pacers, Charlotte Hornets, Boston Celtics and Brooklyn Nets.
After a two-game winning streak during their four-game homestand, the Pistons dropped the final two legs. They fell to the super-hot Cavaliers, then allowed the New York Knicks to halt an eight-game slide in double-overtime Friday night.
The Pistons squandered an 18-point lead in a 121-115 setback.
Greg Monroe led Detroit with 28 points and added 13 rebounds, but he missed a key free throw late in the first OT. Andre Drummond also recorded a double- double with 21 points and 15 boards.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 19 points for the Pistons, who received 16 apiece from Reggie Jackson and Jodie Meeks.
The Pistons failed to finish it off in regulation, going scoreless over the final three minutes. New York opted to play defense down three with 31.4 seconds to play, and after Jackson missed an elbow jumper, Langston Galloway raced down and drained a 3 from well beyond the arc with 6.3 ticks showing.
New York double-teamed Jackson and forced Anthony Tolliver into a contested 28-footer that had no chance of going in at the buzzer.
Neither team led by more than two in the first OT, and Lou Amundson's tip-in of a Galloway miss broke a 103-103 tie with 29.6 seconds remaining.
After a timeout, Monroe muscled Amundson on the left block and was fouled while hitting a turnaround. Monroe missed the subsequent free throw, however, and Tim Hardaway Jr. was long on a baseline jumper at the other end.
Shane Larkin put New York ahead 115-111 with a three-point play with 28.0 seconds left in the second OT, and the Knicks held on from there.
The Pistons shot 12.5 percent from the field in the third quarter, which is where the tide turned for the Knicks.
"That's two games in a row when we've come out at halftime and our starters have not been any good," Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. "We just didn't try defensively at the start of the third quarter."
The Pistons visit New Orleans and Houston on this road trip.
The Wizards won the season's first meeting in Washington, then the Pistons prevailed on Sunday in Motown.