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01/17 21:05 CST Robinson and Cunningham lead Pistons to rout of shorthanded
Pacers, 121-78
Robinson and Cunningham lead Pistons to rout of shorthanded Pacers, 121-78
By DAVE HOGG
Associated Press
DETROIT (AP) --- Duncan Robinson and Cade Cunningham each scored 16 points in
limited minutes as the Detroit Pistons routed the shorthanded Indiana Pacers
121-78 on Saturday night at Little Caesars Arena.
The 43-point margin matched the ninth-biggest win in Pistons franchise history.
The Pacers played without their four leading scorers, with Pascal Siakam
resting and Benedict Mathurin (thumb), Andrew Nembhard (back) and Obi Toppin
(foot) dealing with injuries. T.J. McConnell, who is sixth on the team in
scoring and second in assists, also sat out with a knee problem.
Jalen Duren had 15 points and eight rebounds for Detroit, which got points from
13 players. as the Pistons won for the fifth time in six games.
Jarace Walker led Indiana with 13 points and Tony Bradley added 12. The Pacers
had won four of five.
Detroit led by as many as 44 points in the third quarter, around the time that
Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff pulled his starters for the night. Duren led the
starters with 23 minutes and Cunningham and Robinson were the only others to
reach 20.
Indiana started the game looking like a team using a G-League roster. They
missed 10 of their first 11 shots and turned the ball over five times as
Detroit built a 24-2 lead in the first seven minutes.
It was 59-25 at the half, thanks to the Pacers shooting 23.3% (10-43) from the
floor, including 6% (1-18) on 3-pointers, and missing seven of 11 free throws.
Cunningham (11), Robinson (10) and Duren (9) outscored the Indiana roster 30-25.
The 25 points was Detroit's best defensive half by 11 points and Indiana's
worst offensive half by nine points.
Up next Indiana: Play their third game in four nights on Monday in Philadelphia. Detroit: Host the Boston Celtics on Monday. ___ AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA |
