The suddenly surging Detroit Pistons on Wednesday toppled reigning champions Boston 117-97 to push their NBA winning streak to eight games and halt the Celtics’ win streak at six.
Malik Beasley scored 26 points off the bench to lead the Pistons, connecting on six of 11 from three-point range.
Cade Cunningham scored 21 points and had 11 assists in his 26th double-double of the season, while Detroit’s stout defense harried the Celtics into 19 turnovers that led to 24 Pistons points.
Photo: AFP
Down by as many as 15 in the first half, the Celtics had tied it 55-55 at the break, but Detroit clamped down in the third and took a 90-79 lead into the final period.
“It’s a great feeling,” Cunningham said of the eight-game winning streak — Detroit’s first streak that long since 2008.
With a record of 33-26 the Pistons have already surpassed their win total from the past two seasons combined.
During those difficult campaigns, the mantra was “restore this franchise,” Cunningham said.
“To see it coming to fruition now is a great thing,” he said. “I’m happy for the city, but I’m not satisfied at all. I think there’s still a lot more work to do. The city wants championships, and so we’re slowly building toward that.”
Jayson Tatum scored 27 points to lead the Celtics, who played without All-Star forward Jaylen Brown because of a left thigh contusion.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, it was:
‧ Bulls 117, Clippers 122
‧ Heat 131, Hawks 109
‧ Jazz 101, Kings 118
‧ Knicks 110, 76ers 105
‧ Nets 121, Thunder 129
‧ Pacers 111, Raptors 91
‧ Rockets 118, Spurs 106
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