Even with their veterans back, the Washington Wizards found little success in any facet of Tuesday’s matchup with the Detroit Pistons.

The Wizards welcomed back Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart — they combined to play 44 minutes after a one-game absence for injury management. Smart scored a team-high 16 points, his most since joining Washington last month, and Middleton finished with eight, but the efforts came in a thorough defeat.

Washington shot just 40.2 percent from the field, lost the rebounding battle by 14 and couldn’t limit Pistons star Cade Cunningham during a 123-103 defeat at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

“Our rebounding was an issue again tonight for sure,” Coach Brian Keefe told reporters after the game. “… It’s us as a collective unit just not finishing possessions.”

The Wizards’ second loss in as many days — they fell Monday night in Toronto with a particularly young roster — keeps them at the bottom of the NBA standings at 13-51 and in prime position for May’s draft lottery.

Cunningham, who entered the game 10th in the league in scoring, had a game-high 27 points. He added 10 assists and eight rebounds as Detroit, which won just 31 games over the previous two seasons combined, improved to 37-29.

Rookie guard Bub Carrington, who is among the Wizards’ young players striving to spark a similar turnaround, added 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting with three assists.

The Wizards’ rebounding struggles began early. They trailed by 14 points at the end of a first quarter in which they allowed nine offensive boards and eight second-chance points. Washington was coming off back-to-back games in Toronto in which it allowed its most and second-most second-chance points of the season.

The deficit swelled to 24 points in the third quarter. Two free throws by rookie Kyshawn George (12 points, five rebounds, three steals) cut Detroit’s lead to 11 with just over five minutes left in the game. But consecutive Tobias Harris buckets — the latter on a slick transition feed from Cunningham — forced Keefe to call a timeout.

Soon after, the chippy game — the teams combined for five technical fouls — featured a pair of flagrant fouls. Wizards backup center Richaun Holmes caught the Pistons’ Ausar Thompson with an elbow to the face in the post and was ejected with a flagrant-two foul. Later, Smart earned a flagrant-one on an offensive foul.

Washington will visit Detroit again Thursday night.

Here’s what else to know about the Wizards’ loss:

Bilal Coulibaly did not play because of a right hip contusion. The second-year guard exited after playing eight minutes Monday in Toronto. He appeared to lose his grip after a first-quarter dunk and fell hard, flipping before falling on his side.

Malcolm Brogdon missed his 10th straight game with a left ankle sprain.

AJ Johnson was inactive in a coaches’ decision. The move was made with rest in mind, a team spokesperson said: Johnson had played 52 minutes over the previous two days in games with Washington and its G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go.

Johnson is expected to play for the Go-Go on Wednesday in Detroit. That game begins at 11 a.m., which contributed to Tuesday’s decision.