AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had enough responsibility trying to contain James Harden at the defensive end.That made the Detroit guards offensive contribution that much more impressive.Caldwell-Pope scored a season-high 28 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, and the Pistons held off Harden and the Houston Rockets 114-101 on Saturday night. D.J. Augustin added 28 points and 12 assists for Detroit.I felt good, Caldwell-Pope said. I got myself going with my energy on the defensive end, ran the floor to get easy baskets and that opened up my outside shooting.Harden scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half, returning from a bruised left knee to help the Rockets nearly rally from a 21-point, third-quarter deficit.Houstons Josh Smith was booed throughout his return to the Palace, just more than a month after the Pistons waived the high-priced forward. He had seven points and seven rebounds, shooting only 3 of 11 from the field. Detroit snapped a four-game skid and ended Houstons four-game winning streak.We didnt defend the 3-point line and we didnt defend the paint. They just played a lot harder than we did, and we just let them kick our tails, Rockets coach Kevin McHale said. We couldnt stop Augustin in any part of the floor. I tried a couple different lineups because I just wanted someone to get in front of him for a couple possessions.The Pistons played well initially after cutting Smith, winning seven straight, and fans gave him an unfriendly welcome in his return, booing him when he went to the scorers table to check in for the first time and also when he touched the ball.Detroit led 59-46 at halftime and 86-69 at the start of the fourth quarter.Harden led a 19-6 run to start the fourth, but Caldwell-Pope made enough big shots down the stretch to help the Pistons hold on. The second-year guard capped the victory with a shot from well behind the 3-point line with 3.1 seconds remaining and the shot clock expiring.___BOUNCING BACKThe Pistons were coming off an embarrassing 20-point loss at Philadelphia, and they were sharp throughout against Houstons normally tough defence. Greg Monroe had 19 points and 12 rebounds, and Andre Drummond had 11 and 16. Detroit won for the first time since losing point guard Brandon Jennings last weekend to a ruptured Achilles tendon.Augustin, the starting point guard with Jennings out, had one of his best games of the season.Yeah, I thought he was decent, coach Stan Van Gundy joked. No, he was tremendous. He really was. He was on the attack, right from the start of the game on, and thats big for us.DEFENSIVE PROBLEMSHouston was without star centre Dwight Howard, who has been sidelined because of swelling in his right knee. Harden left toward the end of the second quarter with his knee injury but came back and played almost the entire second half.No matter who was in, the Rockets couldnt slow down the Pistons.Terrible defence. They had 69 points in their last game against Philly and we let them have 60 at halftime, Harden said. Thats terrible. We didnt play at all until the fourth quarter, and that was too late.The Rockets lead the NBA in 3-pointers, but Detroit held its own from beyond the arc, going 10 of 25. Houston shot 11 of 32 on 3s.TIP-INSRockets: Donatas Motiejunas scored 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting. ... Harden had nine assists and seven rebounds.Pistons: Augustins 12 assists were his season high. ... Caldwell-Pope fell two points short of his career high in scoring. He made six 3-pointers.UP NEXTThe Rockets host Chicago on Wednesday night.The Pistons host Miami on Tuesday night. Sean Taylor Redskins Jersey . -- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have released veteran guard Davin Joseph, a mainstay on their offensive line over the past eight seasons. Russ Grimm Jersey . "I love the game, its the best job you can have," he explained Tuesday as the players left Joe Louis Arena for the summer. "Ill sit down with my wife and well go from there. https://www.redskinssportsgoods.com/ . Catch the action live on TSN2 at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. The Wild lead the Northwest Division and look to get back into the win column after having a season-high seven-game winning streak cut short with Tuesdays 2-1 loss at Winnipeg in the finale of a five-game road trip (4-1-0). DaRon Payne Womens Jersey . - Novak Djokovic beat John Isner 7-5, 6-7 (2), 6-1 on Saturday to reach the final of the BNP Paribas Open, where hell resume his longtime rivalry with Roger Federer. Doug Williams Redskins Jersey . That Ginette Reno can sing.Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) - Balanced scoring and a dominant fourth quarter helped the NBAs hottest team to another win on Sunday. Kyle Korver hit 5-for-7 from long distance and led eight Hawks in double figures with 19 points as the Atlanta Hawks toppled the Washington Wizards 120-89 for their eighth straight win. DeMarre Carroll gave 16 points with four steals, Al Horford netted 15 points and Jeff Teague had 11 with a game-high 10 assists for Atlanta, winners in 22 of 24 since a 7-6 start. Its great for us to be able to win at home like that, said Horford. Atlanta has a 3 1/2 game lead on Toronto and Chicago for best record in the East. It kicks off a stretch of four road games in five days in Philadelphia on Tuesday. John Wall paced the Wizards with 15 points and eight assists, but he committed eight of their 20 turnovers. Atlanta turned the ball over just nine times as a team. Washington coach Randy Wittman said the team put itself behind the eight-- ball with the turnovers.dddddddddddd An 8-2 run early in the third quarter helped the Hawks turn a five-point halftime lead into a 64-54 advantage. Walls jumper near the midpoint of the period had Washington within two when three Carroll free throws sparked another Hawks run. Pero Antic and Carroll hit 3s on consecutive touches on the 13-2 flurry, which Thabo Sefolosha capped with a tip-in at 1:19. Sefolosha followed his trey four minutes into the fourth with a drive and dish to Mike Scott for a layup. His outlet pass to Scott on the next possession led to a transition jam, a 20-point Hawk lead and a timeout. The Hawks outscored Washington 33-12 in the fourth to create the lopsided final. Game Notes This was Atlantas fifth wire-to-wire win this season ... The Hawks are 12-1 in their last 13 home games versus Washington ... Washington is 3-4 in its last seven games ... Atlantas bench outscored Washingtons, 48-27. ' ' '