"Hornets Coach Monty Williams kept his locker-room door shut for more than 15 minutes after Saturday night's game against the Detroit Pistons.

When it finally opened, players sat in front of their locker stalls, all showing the same disappointing glare that has been noticeable for more than a month.

Despite all the game-planning and motivational talks, the Hornets stumbled again in the fourth quarter Saturday and suffered a humiliating 89-87 defeat to the Pistons in front 13,174 at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

The Pistons (6-20) appeared to be the ideal opponent for the Hornets (4-20) to end a five-game road losing streak. Detroit had lost seven of their past eight before Friday night's victory against the Milwaukee Bucks, and they were averaging just 20.7 points in the fourth quarter, worst among the league's 30 teams.

Instead of taking advantage, the Hornets committed three turnovers on their first five possessions in the fourth quarter.

After Gustavo Ayon's layup tied the score at 65, the Pistons went on a 10-0 run to take a 75-65 lead. During the stretch, the Hornets missed four consecutive shots. Guard Greivis Vasquez tried to bring New Orleans back, scoring seven consecutive points and cutting the deficit to 75-72 with 5:48 remaining. Two free throws by Al-Farouq Aminu made the score 75-74.

Although the Hornets made a late push, it wasn't enough. The Hornets could only close to one with a second remaining on Trevor Ariza's driving layup.

Ariza almost spoke in a whisper as he said how badly everyone wants to win, but they still can't avoid crucial mistakes that lead to losses."