Detroit Pistons fight through foul woes, Jalen Duren ejection for 115-111 win over Rockets
Chauncey Billups arrested on charges connected to illegal poker ring
Portland Trail Blazers coach and former Detroit Pistons player Chauncey Billups was arrested on charges connected to an illegal poker ring.
- The Detroit Pistons beat the Houston Rockets, 115-111, on Friday night.
- Center Jalen Duren was ejected for a flagrant foul on Amen Thompson in the second quarter.
- Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 21 point and added nine assists in their first win of the season.
HOUSTON — On a night the Detroit Pistons’ center depth was battered by foul trouble, Paul Reed stepped up.
With Jalen Duren ejected and Isaiah Stewart having fouled out, the veteran big man blocked a game-tying layup attempt by Houston Rockets star Alperen Sengun with 16 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, enabling the Pistons to pick up their first win of the season doing so over a Western Conference contender.
The Pistons defeated the Rockets, 115-111, to improve to 1-1 overall. Reed finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and a pair of blocks in 19 minutes off the bench, and Cade Cunningham led the way with 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. With 5.5 seconds left, Cunningham made pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game and secure the win.
Ausar Thompson (19 points) and Ron Holland (11 points, five rebounds) also reached double figures. It was a strong two-way effort for the Pistons, who held the Rockets to 38.6% shooting while making 46.7% of their own shots. Detroit also had a strong night from beyond the arc, making 16 of 39 attempts (41%). Kevin Durant led the Rockets with 37 points.
Marcus Sasser missed his second straight game with a right hip impingement, and Caris LeVert also was a late scratch with left hamstring tightness.
Duren ejection, foul trouble forces rotation adjustments
To counter the Rockets’ big starting frontcourt (Sengun and Steven Adams), Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff went with a two-big lineup for the first time this season midway through the first quarter, bringing in Stewart alongside Duren. Together, they helped set the tone defensively and neutralized Houston’s size advantage.
But Duren only played 12 minutes before he was ejected during the second quarter after elbowing Amen Thompson, Ausar’s twin brother, in the face. Amen fell to the ground, and, after a review, Duren’s offensive foul was upgraded to a Flagrant-2. It left the Pistons undersized for the rest of the game with Stewart and Reed manning the five the rest of the way.
The Pistons couldn’t avoid the whistle. They had 18 personal fouls by halftime, with Stewart picking up four by himself and Cunningham, Robinson and Holland all being called for three. When Stewart was hit with his fifth foul midway through the third period, the Pistons were forced to go small, with Harris at center defending Adams.
Holland also picked up his fifth foul before the end of the third, and fouled out with 7:34 to play in the game. Stewart fouled out two minutes later with 5:37 remaining.
Injuries to Sasser and LeVert, along with several rotation players battling foul trouble, made Bickerstaff go deeper into his rotation. Second-round pick Chaz Lanier made his NBA debut in the first quarter and two-way player Daniss Jenkins made his season debut in the second.
Lanier makes NBA debut
The rookie out of Tennessee checked in for Holland with 4:14 remaining in the opening period, following Holland’s third foul. Lanier knocked down the first (and only) bucket of his career early in the second period — a 3-pointer to give the Pistons the lead, 35-33.
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