NEW YORK (AP) — Cade Cunningham had 42 points and 13 assists to lead the Detroit Pistons to a 126-111 win over the New York Knicks on Thursday night.
The Pistons have defeated the Knicks in the teams’ three meetings this season.
Paul Reed scored 18 points, Tobias Harris had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Ausar Thompson added 10 points for Eastern Conference-leading Detroit.
Jalen Brunson led New York with 30 points, and Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.
Landry Shamet scored 15 points and Josh Hart had 11 as the Knicks shot a miserable 23% (8 of 35) from 3-point range.
The Knicks scored the first five points of the game, taking their biggest lead at 9-2. The Pistons then went on a 21-8 run, taking the lead for good.
Detroit ended the second quarter on a 7-0 run and took its first double-digit lead of the game, 58-48, at halftime.
The Knicks pulled within 62-60 on Towns’ basket early in the third quarter. But, Duncan Robinson hit back-to-back 3s and the Pistons extended their lead to 13 points before settling for a 90-79 advantage heading into the final quarter.
Detroit went up by a game-high 19 points at 104-85 on Daniss Jenkins’ tip-in with 7:50 left in the game.
The Knicks closed within 11 at 120-109 on a 3-pointer by Brunson with 1:33 remaining, but got no closer
The Pistons played without Jalen Duran, their leading rebounder and second-leading scorer, and Isaiah Stewart, who averages 10 points. Both are serving suspensions for their part in a brawl in a game against Charlotte on February 9.
Up next
Pistons: At Chicago on Saturday.
Knicks: Hosts Houston on Saturday.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Jeffrey Bernstein, The Associated Press
