The Detroit Pistons began their longest road trip of the season with a positive result as they survived a late upset bid from the Portland Trail Blazers in a 110-102 victory Monday night at the Moda Center.
Cade Cunningham fouled out with over eight minutes remaining in the game, paving the way for a comeback attempt from the Trail Blazers, who trailed by 21 late in the third quarter.
The Pistons managed to hold on after Portland took a late lead thanks to some clutch playmaking from veteran Tobias Harris, forward Ausar Thompson and center Jalen Duren, who led the team with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
Cunningham played limited minutes after picking up five fouls in the third quarter, but he still managed to post 14 points, nine assists and six rebounds for Detroit before fouling out.
Duren and Cunningham got the Pistons going early, combining to shoot 7-for-9 from the field for 18 points in the first quarter.
Before Cunningham got into foul trouble, it was Thompson needing to sit out after picking up three fouls in the first three minutes of the game.
He came back with a vengeance in the second quarter, scoring six points and grabbing seven boards and dishing out an assist. Thompson settled back in and filled up the stat sheet for the second straight game, finishing with 18 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and three steals.
During Thompson’s absence and with key wing Ron Holland injured, Jaden Ivey got a bit more run from coach J.B. Bickerstaff and made good with a strong showing. He had a pair of nifty left-handed reverse finishes in transition as part of an 11-point performance.
Making defensive stops and getting down the court quickly was the name of the game for the Pistons as they scored 26 points off 19 turnovers from the Trail Blazers.
Portland only scored 10 points off of Detroit’s 10 turnovers.
A late 10-0 run in the second quarter pushed the Pistons ahead as much as 16 points, but a 16-point half from Shaedon Sharpe pulled the score back to 61-51 at halftime.
Cunningham got his first four fouls of the night less than four minutes into the third quarter, but the rest of the Detroit squad was already off and running. The Pistons led by 17 going into the fourth quarter thanks to a 14-point quarter from Duren and another eight by Thompson on 4-for-4 shooting.
In the fourth, the Pistons began to spiral.
Portland started hitting shots and the Pistons got sloppy with fouls, including Cunningham picking up his sixth and final foul — also adding a technical on his way off the court.
The Trail Blazers took advantage to go on a 13-2 run, converting all four of their early foul shots in the period.
The Pistons went cold on offense in the fourth quarter, opening the window for Portland to get back into the game and close their deficit to two points in the final five minutes and take their first lead off a three-pointer from Toumani Camara.
Harris took on a larger role down the stretch, getting himself to the foul line and sinking a clutch jumper to build up a modest lead again for the Pistons.
On a critical possession, Harris went for another tough jumper outside the paint. While it didn’t find the mark, Thompson made a cut to the basket to clean up the miss and secure an insurmountable lead after a late scare.
BOX SCORE
Up next: The Pistons continue their five-game road trip out West, heading to face the Sacramento Kings Tuesday night.