Pistons resist Nuggets comeback

Starting the game 0/7 on 3-pointers, the Nuggets got off to a rough start. Worse than the Pistons anyway.

Jamal Murray and especially Jalen Pickett are missing open shots from long range, and Cade Cunningham and his teammates are taking full advantage of them without really forcing it. When the address is back for Denver, things are better, with 14-3 and a smaller margin (32-27). The Pistons pick up speed again in the second quarter and build a fifteen-point deficit, especially thanks to Duncan Robinson’s game-winning shots. The first period ended on a 10-0 run for JB Bickerstaff’s troops, facing a truly uninspired Denver team (69-50).

After the break, Peyton Watson and Nikola Jokic try to wake up the group. The 2023 champions are 11-3, but still have no hope of a comeback before the final quarter (93-80).

Then, little by little, David Adelman’s players return. Very slowly. The Pistons always make the winning shot that allows them to breathe, but as we get closer to the end, Denver gets more and more pressure: -7 with three minutes, then -2 with two minutes, after Jamal Murray’s 3-pointer.

But Tobias Harris hit a 3-pointer, with a shot that bounced around the circle several times, in the process and the Nuggets’ comeback was missed, leaving the Pistons to reap what they sowed, which is to say a fairly logical victory, despite Denver’s second-half surge (124-121).

WHAT TO REMEMBER

– Too accurate efforts for the Nuggets. We haven’t seen the best face of Nikola Jokić and his team, especially before the break. However, she never gave up and made an effort to come back. But each time it was too short. We’d have to take the point home for a few long minutes, even tie it or go ahead to really rattle the Pistons, who stayed calm the entire game.

– Third win in a row for the leaders of the Eastern Conference. If there was physical impact and a little tension in this meeting, Detroit’s players passed this test with flying colors. They didn’t have the best game of the season either, but they were very solid, to string together their third win in a row and confirm, if it was still necessary, that they really are the bosses in the East after fifty matches, with 5.5 wins ahead of New York and Boston.

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How to read statistics? Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive jump; T = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = point difference when the player is on the court; Points = Points; Rating: player rating calculated based on positive actions – negative actions.