76ers beat Pistons 112-106 on Wednesday night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, as Philadelphia avenged its only loss of the season and kept the best record in the NBA. Jaylen Brown scored a season-high 30 points, Joel Embiid added 26 points and a season-best 15 rebounds, and the 76ers improved to 8-1, while Detroit fell to 6-2 in a meeting of the Eastern Conference’s top two teams.
The win was Philadelphia’s fifth straight and its fourth road win in four road games, the club’s first 4-0 start away from home in 25 years. It also evened the season series after Detroit’s 106-93 win in Philadelphia on October 25, a game Embiid missed.
How 76ers beat Pistons 112-106 unfolded
Philadelphia took control early and never fully let go. Detroit led by six points in the first half, but the 76ers answered with a 37-14 run to open a 48-31 lead midway through the second quarter, and Brown’s deep buzzer-beating three closed the first quarter at 29-21. Brown scored 23 points in the first half, and Philadelphia led 56-42 at halftime while Detroit shot 37.2 percent from the field and just 4-for-19 from three-point range.
The 76ers pushed the lead to 17 points in the third quarter, with Brown opening an 8-2 spurt to make it 70-56. Detroit kept coming back, though, behind Duncan Robinson, who led the Pistons with 27 points on a season-high seven three-pointers, and Cade Cunningham, who finished with 26 points and 11 assists. Ausar Thompson added 11 points and 17 rebounds, and John Collins scored 16 for Detroit.
Philadelphia still led 104-91 after a Tyrese Maxey three-pointer with 4:32 left, and 106-95 after an Embiid jumper with 2:47 remaining. Detroit’s late 11-2 run cut the gap to 106-102, but Brown blocked a pull-up three-point attempt by Cunningham with 38 seconds left, Embiid made two free throws, and Maxey hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to close out the win.
Maxey finished with 19 points and seven assists on his 26th birthday, scoring 17 of his points after halftime after managing only two points in the first half. LeBron James came close to a triple-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, and VJ Edgecombe added 11 points and six rebounds for Philadelphia.
Analysis: what this win says about the East race
This was a statement win, not just another early-season victory. Philadelphia beat the team that had handed it its only defeat, did it on the road, and did it with its stars sharing the load: Brown carried the first half, Embiid controlled the glass, and Maxey took over late after a quiet start. That is the profile of a team that can win in different ways, and at 8-1 the 76ers now hold a two-game edge over Detroit in the loss column.
For Detroit, the loss stings but does not change the bigger picture much. The Pistons proved they could claw back from 17 points down against the East leaders, and their defense — the foundation of their 6-1 start — kept them in a game in which their shooting deserted them early. The concern is narrower: Detroit shot poorly for long stretches, and against a team with Philadelphia’s firepower, a slow start leaves almost no margin.
What to watch next: Philadelphia visits the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night, while Detroit looks to bounce back and protect its place near the top of the East. The rematch on February 5 in Philadelphia is now the next date to circle in this growing rivalry.
For more NBA coverage, see our preview of this matchup, our report on the Warriors withholding Kristaps Porzingis’s salary amid trade talks, and our recap of the Pelicans’ overtime win over the Grizzlies.
Sources: Reuters / Field Level Media; NBC Sports Philadelphia; Detroit Free Press.
