Daniss Jenkins, once again, saved the day for the Detroit Pistons.
With Cade Cunningham sidelined for the third straight game with a collapsed left lung, Jenkins scored the final six points – a pair of free throws, a midrange jumper with 24.6 seconds remaining, and a final pair of free throws with 9 seconds left – to clinch an upset of the Los Angeles Lakers, 113-110.
Jenkins led the Pistons (52-19) with 30 points and eight assists in securing the win over a Lakers team riding a nine-game winning streak.
Detroit Pistons playoff picture
With the win, the Pistons expanded their lead over the Boston Celtics, for the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, to a full five games; the Celtics were idle on Monday night. Detroit, which clinched a playoff spot on Friday, locked up homecourt in the first round – a top-four seed – on Monday, stretching their lead over the 5-seed Toronto Raptors (who played later Monday) to 12½ games with 11 to play. The Pistons also edged ever closer to their first Central Division title since the 2007-08 season; they sit eight games up on the Cleveland Cavaliers, who were idle Monday.
Next up for the Pistons
The Pistons continue their four-game homestand with a visit from the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday (7 p.m., ESPN/FanDuel Sports Network Detroit). The Hawks entered Monday half a game up on the Orlando Magic for the final non-play-in tourney spot in the East and half a game back of the Raptors for the 5-seed. After Atlanta’s visit, the Pistons will wrap up their stay at LCA with a visit from the New Orleans Pelicans – run by former Pistons execs Troy Weaver and Joe Dumars – on Thursday before heading to Minnesota to face the Timberwolves on Saturday afternoon.
Shutting down Luka and LeBron
The Pistons also were without Isaiah Stewart (left calf strain). Jalen Duren added a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Luka Dončić led the Lakers with 32 points. Austin Reaves added 24 points, and LeBron James finished with a near triple-double – 12 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds – despite a scoreless first half.
It was a sharp defensive first half for the Pistons, who led 65-52 at halftime while holding the Lakers to 41.3% overall shooting. Dončić went scoreless in the second quarter after supplying 17 points in the first, and was 5-for-15 overall from the floor in the first half. A 3-pointer from Duncan Robinson at the beginning of the second half gave the the Pistons their biggest lead of the night, 68-52, with 11:47 remaining in the third.
But Dončić, Reaves and James combined for 30 points on 11-for-16 shooting in the third, which the Lakers won, 35-24, and closed with a 20-8 run to trim their lead to two, 89-87. After a fastbreak dunk by Jarred Vanderbilt tied the game at 91 early in the fourth, the Pistons took the lead again with a 6-0 run – a pair of free throws from Duren, a goaltended layup by Javonte Green and a steal and fastbreak layup by Kevin Huerter.
The Pistons led by seven, 105-98, with 4:23 to go. Their next basket didn’t come until Tobias Harris made a turnaround midrange jumper with 2:22 remaining, which snapped a tie to give the Pistons the lead again, 107-105. Deandre Ayton made three of his next four free throws, giving the Lakers their first lead of the second half, 108-107. Reaves answered two free throws from Jenkins to give the Lakers the lead again, setting up Jenkins’ final stretch.
Daniss Jenkins rises to the moment
The Pistons have weathered Cunningham’s absences this season largely due to Jenkins’ heroics. The former two-way guard had yet another standout performance with the starting lineup on Monday, with his most impactful stretch helping them take control in the first half.
Jenkins led the the Pistons with seven points and three assists in the first quarter, helping them keep pace as Dončić went off for 17 points in the opening frame. He then conducted the show as the Pistons outscored the Lakers by 17 points, 42-25, in the second to turn a four-point deficit into a 13-point halftime lead. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Jenkins extended their lead to double digits for the first time, 53-43, with 3:26 remaining until halftime.
As the Lakers threatened to take over in the fourth, Jenkins knocked down a midrange jumper with 6:22 on the clock, and then drove downhill for a layup after nearly losing his handle at the 4:23 mark to push their lead back to seven, 105-98, and respond after the Lakers tied the game at 91 earlier in the period. He and Duren were the Pistons’ most reliable options and kept their offense afloat as Dončić, Reaves and James came alive in the second half.
Pistons neuter hot Lakers offense in first half
Defense had powered the Pistons to three consecutive wins over the Lakers entering Monday, and it enabled them to take a double-digit halftime lead. Ausar Thompson delivered yet another strong one-on-one performance against Dončić, who shot 5-for-15 overall in the first half, while Reaves (eight points, 2-for-8) and James (zero points, 0-for-5) essentially were iced out for a half.
The second quarter was their strongest of the night, holding the Lakers to 25 points as their top trio collectively shot 1-for-9. James didn’t score his first bucket until midway through the third, knocking down a 3-pointer and fastbreak layup during an 8-0 Lakers run to cut the deficit back to single digits after the Pistons took their biggest lead of the night, 68-52, at the beginning of the second half.
Contact Omari Sankofa II at osankofa@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky and/or X @omarisankofa.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Daniss Jenkins outduels Luka Dončić as Pistons snap Lakers win streak
Reporting by Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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