76ers hold off Pistons 112-106 in Detroit, avenging their only loss and moving to 8-1
Philadelphia led by 18 and survived Detroit's late push to win 112-106 in a matchup of the East's top teams, avenging its only loss of the season.
The Philadelphia 76ers won the first rematch of the young season on Wednesday night. They beat the Detroit Pistons 112-106 at Little Caesars Arena, paying back the only team that has beaten them. Philadelphia is now 8-1 and has won five straight. Detroit dropped to 6-2 in what was billed as a meeting of the Eastern Conference's top two teams.
The Sixers pushed their lead to 18 points but never pulled away. In the Pistons recap for SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys, carried by Yahoo Sports, Brennan Sims wrote that Detroit never really went away, and that Philadelphia "found a way to withstand every Detroit storm." Liberty Ballers put Jaylen Brown's 30 points at the center of the win, with Joel Embiid and LeBron James each adding a double-double.
The Pistons came back mostly through Duncan Robinson, who hit seven 3-pointers and scored 27 points. Cade Cunningham had 26 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds, and he went 7-for-7 from the line even though his outside shot was off. Ausar Thompson grabbed 17 rebounds. Embiid drew double teams all night, and a scuffle between him and Detroit's Tolu Smith seemed to lift the home crowd. The Sixers still answered every run. Sims also noted that Detroit missed injured center Jalen Duren on Wednesday and was outgunned on talent.
This result counts for more than one win in November. Detroit's 106-93 win in Philadelphia was the low point of the Sixers' first nine games, and their 93 points that night are still their season low. On Wednesday they got the same opponent on the road and limited Brown's former Boston teammate, er, Detroit's main threats enough to close out a split of the season series so far. The Sixers' many stars, with Tyrese Maxey alongside Embiid, James and Brown, gave Detroit more ways to lose than it could cover.
What it means for Friday at Cleveland
Philadelphia gets a day off before visiting the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, November 6, on Prime Video. The Sixers have already beaten Cleveland once, 114-106 at home, as part of a 3-0 start before the loss to Detroit.
The current streak has been built more on finishing games than on blowouts. Three of the five wins came by exactly five points: at Indiana, against New York and at Charlotte. The 126-107 win over Chicago was the only lopsided one. Philadelphia has held four of the five opponents in the streak to 107 points or fewer. Through nine games the team averages 111 points and allows about 105.
The road record is also a strength. Wednesday's win made Philadelphia 4-0 away from home, with wins at New York, Indiana, Charlotte and now Detroit. Friday's game will test that again against an opponent the Sixers have already handled once. They have also now shown they can protect a big lead late against a good team.
