Rodney Stuckey's ankle sprains put scare into Pistons

The way Rodney Stuckey went down, and looking at the replays, it appeared Pistons fans might have seen the last of Stuckey for at least Thursday's game.

And, maybe, much longer.

The guard's left ankle buckled and rolled on a fast break with 4:38 left in the first quarter. He immediately fell to the floor, grimacing in pain, and The Palace fell silent, suspecting another long-term injury.

"It was one of those things where I said, 'You can't be serious,' with all the injuries we've had this season," said Richard Hamilton, who sprained an ankle opening night and missed much of the first quarter of the season.

Stuckey returned, in the first half no less, but amazingly, rolled the same ankle again. This time he left for the locker room, where strength and conditioning coach Arnie Kander taped the ankle tightly and securely.

Amazingly, Stuckey returned and was one of the few Pistons bright spots in a 98-87 loss. Stuckey led the Pistons with 22 points, and had six assists and four steals in 32 minutes.

"Stuckey showed a lot of courage by coming back," coach John Kuester said. "I was very concerned when he got hit and fell down. I didn't expect him to come back and play. That just speaks volumes for him."

Stuckey said the first sprain looked much more gruesome than it was.

"The first time when you sprain your ankle, you get that pain and then it goes away," Stuckey said. "Arnie does a good job of taping me well, so I just came back and put some more tape on it."

And the second time Stuckey was hurt?

"Yeah, I just fell, it just gave out on me," Stuckey said. "But I'll be fine."

Stuckey wasn't sure how he'd feel the next few days. The Pistons don't play again until Tuesday in Dallas.

"It is sore but if I can play through it, I will," he said.

Rare victory

Chicago hadn't won a road game since Nov. 17 in Sacramento, and had lost eight consecutive road games.

"I hadn't really thought about it, just happy to get a win," said Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro, whose imminent firing has been rumored for weeks. "We just have to keep on grinding, finding ways, and I was pleased with how we started the game. Our energy was up for most of the game."

Slam dunks

No Piston is in the top 10 at any position in All-Star Game balloting.

... Charlie Villanueva had 10 points in 28 minutes a day after having a lengthy chat with Kuester after questioning his low minutes Tuesday in a loss.

"He showed a different type of style I wanted to see from him," Kuester said.