The Detroit Pistons are showing it’s not all doom and gloom as they await the potential return of Cade Cunningham.
The Eastern Conference leaders made it three straight in the second quarter of a 115-105 win over the Golden State Warriors on Friday, March 20 at Little Caesars Arena.
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Jalen Duren scored 23 points and Dennis Jenkins, who started in Cunningham’s place while the All-Star guard recovered from a collapsed lung, finished with 22 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, plus a steal for a near triple-double. Speaking of steals, Osar Thompson had 7 steals for the Pistons, forced 26 turnovers, and finished with 32 points.
Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren (0) dunks during the first half against the Golden State Warriors at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Friday, March 20, 2026.
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Paul Reed scored 15 points, Tobias Harris scored 13 points, and Duncan Robinson and Ron Holland each scored 11 points for the Pistons, who opened a four-game homestand.
In addition to Cunningham’s absence, the Pistons were also without Marcus Sather (hip) and Isaiah Stewart (calf). The Warriors, playing without Stephen Curry, Seth Curry, Jimmy Butler, Al Horford (Grand Ledge), Moses Moody and Quinten Post, led 26-21 in the second quarter, but the Pistons gave up 36 points to Golden State to go into halftime with a seven-point lead.
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The Golden State Warriors were led by Brandon Podziemski, who scored 15 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
Detroit Pistons playoff pictures
With this win, the Pistons improved their record to 51-19 with a dozen games left. They are 4.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics atop the Eastern Conference, although the Celtics also play in Memphis on Friday night. The Pistons also extended their Central Division lead to eight games, meaning they could clinch their first division title since 2008 sometime next week.
What’s next for the Pistons
But first, they need to defeat the next visitor to Little Caesars Arena, the Los Angeles Lakers (45-25). LeBron James and his team hit Detroit on Monday (7 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Detroit), winless since March 5 and riding an eight-game winning streak. The Lakers will visit the Orlando Magic on Saturday night.
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Welcome home, Draymond?
It wasn’t the most pleasant return for Draymond Green, who played high school in Saginaw and then Michigan State before embarking on a 14-season NBA career, all with the Warriors. Green started for the Warriors but did not score in 22 minutes, finishing with five rebounds, six assists, one steal and one block.
second (period) wind
Ten of Robinson’s 11 points in the first half came in the second quarter. Detroit shot 52.3 percent from the field before halftime while forcing 13 turnovers.
The score was 62-56 in the third quarter, and the Pistons went on an 18-5 run to expand their lead to 19 points. Detroit scored the first seven points of the surge, including two layups by Thompson.
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Thompson made another layup with Duren’s pass, rewriting the score to 73-59. Jenkins’ counterattack extended the lead to 18 points. Reed received a pass from Jenkins and scored a layup to lead 80-61.
At the end of the third quarter, the Warriors narrowed the point difference to 14 points, and the Pistons started with a 10-0 spurt. Duren scored 7 of the points, and Caris LeVert scored a layup to make the score 97-73.
This article originally appeared in the Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons beat Golden State Warriors to win third straight
