well as the B.C. Lions defence has

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AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- The Detroit Pistons are a much-improved team after Joe Dumars rebuilt the roster once again over the summer. That doesnt mean they are ready to knock off teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder. Detroit played the Thunder tough into the third quarter Friday night, but Oklahoma Citys superior depth took over down the stretch, especially once Andre Drummond and Josh Smith got into foul trouble. Rookie Steven Adams finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds, while fellow post reserve Nick Collison had nine points and four rebounds in a 119-110 victory. "We were just trying to keep it simple and try not to make mistakes," Collison said of his partnership with the New Zealander. "I thought we were really locked in defensively. It was a different situation than most nights, but our bench played really well." Thunder coach Scott Brooks thought his entire second unit played a key role in the victory. "Nick, Steven, Derek (Fisher), Jeremy (Lamb) and Reggie (Jackson) did an outstanding job," he said. "They gave us a great effort, they moved the ball and took care of it. Steven and Nick did a really great job of playing together and understanding what we needed them to do. They protected the paint and they took care of the pick-and-roll. Detroits biggest problem, though, was trying to stop Kevin Durant. Their only hope of that was Smith. He sat out large portions of the second half and Durant finished with 37 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. "We werent hitting shots and they were hurting us on the offensive glass, but it is really hard to adjust your lineup to fix those things when you are facing Kevin," said Pistons coach Maurice Cheeks, who spent the last four years as an assistant with the Thunder. "You always have to have someone on the floor that can guard him, so that limits your options when you want to change things." Smith finished with 25 points for Detroit before fouling out, while Greg Monroe (20 points, 15 rebounds) and Brandon Jennings (22 points, 11 assists) added double-doubles. "Its always tough against that team, but especially when you get into foul trouble," said Monroe, who found himself playing with Kyle Singler, Gigi Datome and Jonas Jerebko instead of Drummond and Smith. "They kept making plays, and they kept getting to the free-throw line. It is hard to win games like that." Leading by 10 early in the fourth, the Thunder struggled to put Detroit away. The Pistons got within 88-84, but didnt have an answer for Durant down the stretch. Smith committed his fifth foul trying to guard him with 5:07 left, and Durant hit both free throws to give him 30 points and move the Oklahoma City lead to 101-89. Smith fouled out moments later, and picked up a technical foul on his way off the floor. Oklahoma City threatened to break the game open in the second quarter, leading by as many as 11 as the Pistons continued to struggle to score from outside. Jennings and Monroe, though, combined for 10 points in the final two minutes of the half, pulling Detroit within 55-51. Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 27 points in the half, while Monroe had 13 points and eight rebounds for Detroit. The Pistons went ahead on back-to-back three-point plays by Monroe and Smith midway through the third, but Smith immediately committed his fourth foul and had to join Drummond on the bench. Six straight points by Durant forced Drummond back in with four fouls, but Lambs 3-pointer at the buzzer let Oklahoma City take an 84-76 lead into the fourth. Westbrook scored 20 points despite missing 14 of his 19 field-goal attempts. NOTES: Detroit Tigers President Dave Dombrowski had one of the best seats in the house, sitting courtside just two spots away from the halfcourt line. ... Cheeks got an enthusiastic pregame welcome from the Thunder. Durant grabbed Cheeks in a playful headlock, while Thunder coach Scott Brooks and several players rushed over to embrace him. ... Durant earned a spot on the nightly blooper reels when he lost his grip on the ball while driving for a baseline dunk. As Durants empty hands came down on the basket, the ball looped over the Pistons bench and into the stands. . The Brazilian heads into Saturday afternoons race coming off a close runner-up finish to Ryan Hunter-Reay in the Indianapolis 500. . Henrik Samuelsson and Luke Bertolucci also scored for the Oil Kings, who are now 9-0 on home ice in the playoffs to cut Portlands series lead to 2-1. Chase De Leo and Mathew Dumba responded for the Winterhawks, who suffered just their fourth loss in their last 46 games, a string of success running all the way back to Jan. http://www.airmax2016ie.com/nike-air-ma ... -date.html. The Nevada Athletic Commission voted unanimously in Las Vegas to quit granting therapeutic use exemptions for fighters undergoing the so-called TRT. . So far, so good: Gonzalez has allowed one run through 12 innings this season. His second start came Tuesday night, when he gave up only three singles over six innings to lead the Nationals to a 5-0 victory over the Miami Marlins. . It was a loss. But it was also a learning experience. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 24 points each to lift Brooklyn to a 94-87 win over the Raptors, making their first playoff appearance since 08. "I thought we played a little bit as expected as it is our first playoff game," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said.Each week, well take a look at some top performers from the CFL, with an eye to looking ahead to some matchups that could be favourable for TSN Fantasy Football, CFL Edition, presented by Joseph Abboud. Here are some of the best from Week 5 and players to watch for Week 6: TOP PERFORMERS Dan LeFevour, QB, Hamilton (21-for-30, 361 YDS, 1 TD passing, 109 YDS, 13 carries, 1 TD rushing vs. Ottawa) - Apparently Zach Collaros can take his time recovering from a big hit by Edmontons Odell Willis on July 4, as hes been placed on the six-game injured list. LeFevours monster game against Ottawa should leave the TiCats relatively comfortable with their QB situation in Collaros absence. LeFevour has completed 73.1% of his passes this year, and he can run, so he should be at least adequate as a fill-in while Collaros is out. C.J. Gable, RB, Hamilton (167 YDS, 1 TD, 9 touches vs. Ottawa) - Not a lot of opportunities for Gable against the Redblacks, but he sure made the most of it, averaging 18.6 yards every time he touched the ball. Sure, its against an expansion team, but the second-year back out of USC is providing plenty of reason for Hamilton to give him a bigger role in the offence going forward. Will Ford, RB, Saskatchewan (137 YDS, 3 TD, 20 touches vs. Toronto) - The third-year runner out of South Carolina State, who played for Winnipeg the past two seasons, had a career day against the Argos. He rushed for 156 yards in a game against Calgary last season, but three touchdowns made last weeks performance the most productive day of his relatively brief career. PLAYERS TO WATCCH IN WEEK 6 Darian Durant, QB, Saskatchewan - Off to a slow start, completing fewer than 55% of his passes (compared to a career mark of 61.dddddddddddd2%), Durant also has five touchdowns and five interceptions through his first four games in 2014. He didnt need to throw much in a rout of the Argos last week, but Durant gets a matchup against an Ottawa team that has the leagues worst pass defence. Seems like a good time for a breakout performance. Jock Sanders, RB, Calgary - As well as the B.C. Lions defence has played, ranking second in the league with 291.6 yards against per game, they are more susceptible against the run and Sanders contributed 93 yards on 17 touches against Edmonton last week. Sanders, who has mostly been a return specialist, with a total of eight carries in three previous seasons with the Stampeders, is the primary replacement for Jon Cornish while the reigning Most Outstanding Player is recovering from a concussion. Marcus Henry, WR, Ottawa - A big target, at 6-foot-5, Henry had a productive game (10 REC, 138 YDS, 1 TD at Hamilton) in a losing effort last week and while the Redblacks could have their troubles against Saskatchewan this week, the Riders defence has allowed 259.3 passing yards per game, ranking seventh in the league. Henry may not duplicate the best game of his career, but there is room for him to step into a bigger role for Ottawa moving forward. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' '