The Detroit Pistons marched to a commanding victory on Saturday, Dec. 20, to close out the home slate of the 2025 calendar.
They blew out the Charlotte Hornets at Little Caesars Arena, 112-86, to improve to 22-6. Detroit outscored Charlotte, 33-14, in the fourth quarter and dominated them defensively, holding them to 31.5% shooting for the game.
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Cade Cunningham led the way with a triple-double — 22 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists – with two steals. Jalen Duren added a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Tobias Harris (16 points), Duncan Robinson (15 points) and Ausar Thompson (14 points, four blocks) also scored in double figures. Flint native (and Michigan State alumnus) Miles Bridges and rookie Kon Knueppel each had 19 points for Charlotte.
Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) dribbles in the first half against the Charlotte Hornets at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025.
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Next up, the Pistons hit the road for a five-game road trip, starting against the Trail Blazers in Portland, Oregon, on Monday (10 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Detroit).
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Duncan Robinson returns, heats up in second half
After a knee-to-knee collision with Mavericks wing Naji Marshall during the Pistons’ road loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, Robinson exited the game early in the second half and was later ruled out with a left knee contusion. The Michigan alumnus returned Saturday and was instrumental in helping the Pistons take over during the third quarter.
He knocked down three 3-pointers and completed a 4-point play by the 8:56 mark of the period, extending a 28-7 Pistons run to push their lead to 18, 70-52. Robinson scored 10 of the Pistons’ first 10 points of the half. Later in the fourth quarter, he came up with a steal and fastbreak dunk to extend another Pistons run, 10-2, and increase their lead to 89-77 with just over nine minutes to play in the game.
It was a bounce-back performance for Robinson, who shot 1-for-7 overall and 0-for-5 from 3 in 13 minutes in Dallas.
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Pistons clamp down defensively in final period
After an alley-oop from Cunningham to Thompson with 7:25 on the clock in the third quarter gave the Pistons a 20-point lead, they went cold and allowed the Hornets to get back into the game. With Cunningham on the bench, the Hornets closed the period with an 18-5 run, capped with three free throws from Brandon Miller to cut the Pistons’ lead to seven, 79-72.
Charlotte wing Sion James opened the fourth with a 3-pointer, reducing Detroit’s lead to 79-75 before the Pistons pulled away for good. They held the Hornets to 6-for-21 shooting (28.6%) and forced 10 turnovers in the fourth quarter to put the game away.
Detroit Pistons guard Jaden Ivey (23) shoots over Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges (0) in the first half at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025.
After the 3-pointer from James, the Pistons went on a 23-2 run to take a 25-point lead with 4:13 to play. They scored 12 points off of those turnovers and led by as many as 29. Cunningham capped the run by catching an alley-oop from Harris.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons dominate fourth quarter to buzz Charlotte Hornets