LOS ANGELES: Cade Cunningham scored 32 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics 112-105 to extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference standings on Monday. Pistons point guard Cunningham produced another potent offensive display in a back-and-forth duel that saw the lead change hands 15 times before Detroit pulled away in the final minutes.
Cunningham, averaging just under 27 points this season, rattled in six three-pointers in 11-of-21 shooting from the field to help Detroit improve to 21-5 in the Eastern Conference. But Detroit were made to work hard for their fourth straight win after a dogged performance from Boston, who led by as many as 12 points in the second quarter before being reeled in.
“We love games like this that are tough, muddy,” Cunningham said. “I think the game getting that way turns us up a little bit more.” Detroit’s starters were backed by 47 points from the bench, with Caris LeVert coming on to add 13 points in 19 minutes on court and Jaden Ivey finishing with 10 points.
“We’re deep — we got starters up and down the roster,” Cunningham said. “Guys who come in and do their job better than anybody in the league. It’s fun to play with.” Jaylen Brown led Boston’s scoring with 34 points while Derrick White finished with 31.
The Denver Nuggets battled past the Houston Rockets 128-125 in overtime to extend their winning streak to five games in a heavyweight duel between the second and third-placed teams in the Western Conference.
Denver’s Serbian star Nikola Jokic bagged a superb triple-double with 39 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists with Jamal Murray also weighing in with a hefty 35-point contribution. Turkish star Alperen Sengun led the Rockets scoring with 33 points while Kevin Durant finished with 25 in a game that saw the lead change hands 17 times.
“They’re a talented team, they have a really good defense, they’re big and tall,” Jokic said of Houston. “It was a really good game for us. This is something that we need to build on.” The Toronto Raptors improved to 16-11 to move into third place in the Eastern Conference with a 106-96 road win over the Miami Heat. Brandon Ingram’s 28 points laid the foundation for Toronto, who outscored Miami 32-19 in the fourth quarter.
The New York Knicks will attempt to find a way past the imposing 7ft 4in (2.23m) frame of San Antonio Spurs prodigy Victor Wembanyama on Tuesday as they bid to end their 52-year trophy drought in the NBA Cup final in Las Vegas.
The Knicks head into Tuesday’s final at the T-Mobile Center brimming with confidence after polishing off Eastern Conference top seeds Orlando with ease in Saturday’s semi-finals. That win has left the New York franchise within touching distance of a first piece of silverware since the team’s 1973 NBA Finals victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Blocking their path, though, is the fit-again Wembanyama, the 21-year-old French giant who was instrumental in helping San Antonio upset the in-form Oklahoma City Thunder in Saturday’s Western Conference semi-final. Wembanyama played limited minutes in the defeat of Oklahoma City, appearing from the bench in the second quarter to haul San Antonio back into contention after they had trailed by 11 points at the end of the first quarter.
Knicks talisman Jalen Brunson said New York would attempt to drag Wembanyama out of position defensively. “You’ve got to find ways to pull him away from the basket, and you’ve got to obviously be smart,” Brunson said of Wembanyama. “You can’t just go in there and think no one is going to come and affect the shot. “He’s great at what he does, and we’ve just got to be smart as a team, playing off two feet and reading where he is and just trying to get the best shot as possible.”
Team effort
Karl-Anthony Towns echoed Brunson’s assessment of Wembanyama. “He’s (7-4), and he’s very talented,” Towns said. “For us, we’re going to have to do a good job of executing our defensive game plan and offensively, as well.” Knicks coach Mike Brown said neutralizing Wembanyama would require a team effort.
“You’re not going to be able to guard a guy like that one-on-one,” Brown said. “You try to put length, size, physicality at the point of attack when it comes to him, but it’s got to be five guys guarding the basketball at all times.
“We have some pretty good defenders with length, and hopefully they can try to make it as difficult as possible with him, knowing that they have help behind them.” Wembanyama’s introduction from the bench on Saturday sent a surge of excitement rippling through the T-Mobile Arena crowd, who later showered the Frenchman with chants of “M-V-P.”
Wembanyama, meanwhile, said San Antonio’s defeat of Oklahoma City augured well for the chances of the Spurs emerging as genuine rivals to the Thunder in the Western Conference.
“I think we’re not quite there yet, but it’s a good sign that people see that it’s possible,” Wembanyama said. “I don’t think anybody right now can claim to have a rivalry with them in the league. They’re in their own tier.
“But in the future if we can provide a stage this good and we reach that level, of course it would be great to have a rivalry because if you’re at the top and you have a rivalry, it means you’re in the best position to win titles.”
Wembanyama said while a San Antonio victory on Tuesday would “not be super significant step” it would still carry some significance. “It’s a high-stakes game that both teams are going to be very invested in winning,” Wembanyama said. “It just shows that we are preparing and we will pass the next step for more significant games in the playoffs.” — AFP