Well-oiled Pistons tie series vs Magic
LOS ANGELES, United States — The Detroit Pistons used dominant defense and a third-quarter scoring spree to beat the Orlando Magic, 98-83, on Wednesday (Thursday Manila time) and level their NBA Eastern Conference playoff series at one game apiece.
Cade Cunningham scored 27 points and handed out 11 assists, and Tobias Harris added 16 points and 11 rebounds for Eastern Conference top seeds Detroit, which was stunned in Game 1 of the best-of-seven series on Sunday (Monday Manila time).
Clearly stung by that upset on their home floor, the Pistons set an early defensive tone with seven of their 11 blocks in the first quarter, but it was tied 46-46 at halftime.
The Pistons opened the third quarter on an 11-0 scoring run to finally gain some separation and by the time they polished off a 38-16 third period they were in total control.
"We just played defense," Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "It's that simple. When we play defense at the level we're capable of, it triggers everything for us."
The Pistons, who had six players score in double figures, snapped an 11-game home losing streak in the playoffs that dated back to May 2008.
Now the series shifts to Orlando for Game 3 on Saturday and Game 4 on Monday (Sunday and Tuesday in Manila, respectively).
Jalen Suggs scored 19 points and Paolo Banchero added 18 for Orlando, but the Magic were held to their lowest points total all season, lower than an 87-point total in a loss to Toronto in March.
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