Jayson Tatum had 37 points and the visiting Boston Celtics continued their dominance over Detroit with a 124-118 victory over the Pistons on Saturday night.
The Celtics have won their last 10 meetings with the Pistons. Detroit’s last win in the series was by one point on February 16, 2022.
Jaylen Brown scored 24 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Payton Pritchard contributed 19 points, while Al Horford and Derrick White added 17 points each.
The defending champions finished the first week of the season with a 3-0 record. Detroit, which set a franchise record for most losses last season, is still looking for its first win under new head coach JB Bickerstaff.
Jaden Ivey led Detroit with 26 points. Cade Cunningham scored 21 points and 10 assists, Malik Beasley added 17 points and Jalen Duren had 15.
The Celtics went into halftime with a 73-62 lead, while making 16 of their 32 3-point attempts. Boston had a lead of up to 23 points (67-44), but the Pistons closed the gap with an 18-6 run to end the first half.
Boston still led 85-74 with 7:26 left in the third quarter after White’s dunk. Detroit then went on a 14-1 run to take the lead. Duren had two inside baskets during that span and Stewart added two layups, including the go-ahead basket.
Tatum’s 3-pointer with 35.7 seconds left in the quarter gave Boston a 94-90 lead. Beasley responded with a three-pointer before the quarter ended.
Pritchard hit a 3-pointer in the first minute of the fourth quarter to give Boston a 99-93 lead. The Pistons regained the lead at 105-103 thanks to two free throws by Simone Fontecchio. They increased the lead to six, 112-106, thanks to a layup by Cunningham.
The Celtics scored eight unanswered points, including a pair of 3-pointers by Jrue Holiday. Ivey’s basket from close range tied the score at 114-14 before Tatum made two free throws. Tatum doubled the lead with a jumper after Ivey missed a three-point attempt.
Beasley’s 3-pointer brought Detroit within one point. White, Brown and Tatum made free throws to secure Boston’s victory.
–Field level media
