Det. 127, Pho. 122 (OT): Jackson leads Pistons' rally

Marcus Morris was surprised.

"We were down 16?" Morris asked.

When the media reaffirmed that yes, the Pistons had overcome a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Suns, Morris was incredulous.

"Damn, uh, damn," he said.

Morris' reaction reflected the mood of the Pistons after they turned a near-certain loss into a 127-122 overtime victory at the Palace of Auburn Hills on Wednesday.

BOX SCORE

The Pistons (10-9) used a 28-12 run over the last 9 minutes of regulation to force overtime and Reggie Jackson scored eight of his game-high 34 points in overtime to push his team over the .500 mark.

Jackson added a season-high 16 assists.

Morris had 24 points and 14 rebounds and Ersan Ilyasova added a season-high 23 points as the Pistons moved to 2-0 on this four-game home stand.

Andre Drummond had with 22 points and 12 rebounds, but the notoriously poor free-throw shooter rattled in two with 14.3 seconds left to force overtime, allowing to Jackson to save the Pistons from there.

But Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy wasn't passing a lot of compliments afterward – especially after watching the Suns (8-11) carve up his defense for the better part of three quarters.

He tried multiple coverages – even going zone for several possessions.

"What we were searching for quite honestly was a scheme that would work with a total lack of effort," Van Gundy said. "And we couldn't find one. So we went back to our normal stuff and guys played harder – which is usually the adjustment you need to make."

He raised his hands and continued: "Play harder. No really, you know, try. Try, really give an effort. That's usually the adjustment you need to make. Look, I don't want to get going because we won and I don't want this to be a negative thing."

Van Gundy's irritation carried over to the players.

When reminded of the thrilling comeback at Portland, Morris scoffed at the notion of such happenings becoming a trait of the team.

"Hopefully that don't be the trait of this team," said Morris, who turned in 42 minutes with a sore back. "It just so happens it happened that way. We can sustain runs, but I'd rather be closer than be fighting and sometimes the shots don't fall that did fall tonight. I don't like that as our identity, but we just did a great job of coming back tonight."

Jackson scored 18 points in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The Suns (8-11) didn't have an answer for the pick-and-roll as Jackson got to the rim at will.

"You're just trying to find a way back in, just fight," said Jackson, who earned several stitches over his left eye from a gash he suffered during the game. "I think we pride ourselves on never giving up on any game, but we have to get better playing all 48."

He was asked about stitches.

"I'm Gucci," he said. That was his way of saying he was fine.

Former Piston Brandon Knight missed a corner triple that would have tied the game at 125 with two seconds left. He finished with 22 points for the Suns (8-11). Backcourt mate Eric Bledsoe added 21 points and nine assists. Morris' twin brother, Markieff, did not play for the Suns; he's dealing with a knee bruise.

Jackson scored four straight points to give the Pistons a 107-104 lead with 1:47 left.

But Mirza Teletovic's triple tied the game 17 seconds later.

Drummond answered with a bucket to make the score 109-107, but Jon Leuer (20 points) got around Drummond for a dunk to tie the game at 109.

Ilyasova was fouled attempting a triple, but only got one to fall to give the Pistons a one-point lead with 38.3 seconds left.

And Knight nailed a triple from the top of the circle to give the Suns a 112-110 lead with 30 seconds left.

And when Ilyasova missed a wide-open triple on the next possession, it looked like the Pistons were finished.

But Morris came through against his former team with a steal with 19.1 seconds left.

And Drummond was able to get two free throws to fall to force overtime.

Grand Rapids native Devin Booker sparked the Suns with 15 points in the first half before finishing with 18.

The Suns took a 57-51 lead with 1:01 left in the first half.

But Morris hit a triple and Jackson banked in a half-court shot at the halftime buzzer to tie the game at 57-57 at halftime.

Contact Vince Ellis at vellis@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @vincent_ellis56.