Jalen Duren, Pistons hand Wizards 13th straight loss
Jalen Duren scored a career-high 36 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the visiting Detroit Pistons overcame an early exit by star Cade Cunningham to beat the Washington Wizards 130-117 on Tuesday.
Daniss Jenkins scored 15 points, Tobias Harris added 12 and Ronald Holland II had 11 for Detroit, which handed Washington its 13th straight loss.
Cunningham exited the game midway through the opening quarter due to back spasms and did not return.
Paul Reed and Caris LeVert chipped in 10 points apiece to help Detroit avenge a 126-117 home loss to Washington on Feb. 5.
The Pistons won for the fourth time in the past five games, shooting 51.1% from the field and 40.7% (11 of 27) from 3-point range. The teams will meet again on Thursday in Washington.
Bub Carrington scored 21 of his season-high 30 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Wizards. Carrington shot 12-for-16 from the field and matched his season high with six 3-pointers.
Will Riley added 21 points for the Wizards, while Justin Champagnie had 18 points and nine rebounds, Jaden Hardy added 16 points, and Tre Johnson finished with 11.
Washington sprinted to a 13-4 lead before Detroit settled in and tied the game at 32-all at the end of the first quarter.
After Carrington scored to give the Wizards a 47-44 lead with 8:32 left in the second quarter, the Pistons answered with a 15-3 run to go ahead 59-50 on a 3-pointer from Marcus Sasser.
Duren scored 15 points in the first half for Detroit, which held a 63-57 advantage at the half. Riley had 14 to lead the Wizards.
Detroit took control after intermission by outscoring Washington 37-26 in the third quarter. Duren put up 10 points in the period, which ended with the Pistons leading 100-83.
Carrington scored 10 points during an 18-7 run that cut the Wizards' deficit to 115-104 with 4:50 left in the contest. Detroit responded with five straight points to help secure the victory.
Alex Sarr (toe), Trae Young (quad) and Bilal Coulibaly (right heel) each sat out with injuries for Washington, which had nine active players on the second night of a back-to-back.