Opportunistic Pistons Beat Lakers : Pro basketball: Rebounding helps make difference. Loss to Detroit, 106-101, is fourth in a row at home.

The question, after the Lakers’ 106-101 loss to the Pistons on Sunday, isn’t whether they can rebound from their third consecutive loss and franchise record-tying fourth home defeat in a row, but whether they can rebound.

Period.

Dennis Rodman, pursuing his second successive NBA rebounding title, had 21 rebounds in leading Detroit to a 48-43 advantage. With 9:49 to play in the second quarter, after a 19-4 spree gave Detroit a 26-18 lead, Rodman had 12 rebounds. The Lakers had 11. At halftime, when the Lakers led, 45-43, they had 19 rebounds. Rodman had 17.

“We got some early rebounds and that got them off balance, and we made some shots and that dictated the game,� said Rodman, who is averaging 18.6 rebounds. “It used to be you weren’t coming in here and winning. That was out. You were coming here to see the stars. Now you come here and you have an opportunity to win.�

Strong contributions from their reserves helped the Pistons (29-35) capitalize on that opportunity, before a Forum crowd of 15,923.

Seven Pistons scored in double figures, including seldom-used reserves Danny Young (15) and Gerald Glass (16).

Joe Dumars scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter to thwart a Laker challenge. The Lakers were short of players after rookie guard Doug Christie was sent home before the game with a 103-degree fever and flu, and forward James Worthy was forced out at halftime because of chronic tendinitis in his right foot.

The Lakers’ rebounding woes stood out as the underlying cause of Sunday’s loss, which extended their slump to six defeats in nine games.

“We’ve been outrebounded in (11 of 14), and that’s a very big part of the game of basketball. It represents aggressiveness. It represents second-chance opportunities,� Coach Randy Pfund said after his team’s record fell to 0-3 halfway through this home stand and 33-31 overall. “We just have some holes in the middle that we just can’t seem to fill up.�

And sometimes, they create more problems with what Pfund called “dumb plays.�

One of those was by Vlade Divac, who led the Lakers with 12 rebounds and a season-high 28 points but fouled out on an unsuccessful steal attempt with 1:10 to play and Detroit ahead, 99-95.

“It was a stupid foul,� Divac said.

It was one of many mental errors by the Lakers, who made a lot of physical errors, too. They led, 14-7, with 4:38 to play in the first quarter, then sank only one of 10 shots while Detroit were nine for 17.

The Pistons went ahead for good in the third quarter, 72-70, when Glass made a baseline jump shot after Benoit Benjamin blocked his first attempt. They maintained the lead, even though Rodman, Terry Mills and Isiah Thomas each had four fouls before the quarter ended.

“Losing at home hurts because I’m not used to it and you never want to accept it, but that’s how this season has been,� said A.C. Green, whose three-pointer made it 104-101 with 49.8 seconds left.

The season could easily continue this way: the Lakers play host to the Phoenix Suns and the New York Knicks, the NBA’s top two teams, Wednesday and Friday.

“The game everybody said we had no chance of winning of these six was the Phoenix game. We’ve got to use that as a rallying point,� Pfund said. “We’re not taking any time off. We’ve got some players who need to improve.�

Said assistant Bill Bertka: “Tonight, they had 22 offensive rebounds and they shot 46%. Those 22 extra opportunities are 20 points right there. Rebounding is the key ingredient to winning.�

Laker Notes

Doug Christie is expected to play Wednesday, but James Worthy’s status is day to day. Worthy was to undergo tests today. . . . Detroit placed Mark Aguirre (strained left arch) on the injured list. . . . Bill Laimbeer didn’t play in the first half, the first time he has been benched for a half since the 1980-81 season.