The Pistons secured a hard-fought victory over the Mavericks in their hometown return, with Marcus Sasser leading the charge. Sasser scored 13 straight points during a crucial stretch in the third quarter, helping the Pistons maintain a lead against a Mavericks squad missing Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. The Pistons, who have been struggling this season, managed to pull off an upset with their impressive performance.
Despite being without their leading scorer, Cade Cunningham, for the sixth consecutive game, the Pistons put up a strong effort. Chimezie Metu had a standout game for Detroit, matching his career high with four 3-pointers and scoring 18 points. Jalen Hardy led the Mavericks with 25 points off the bench, while Olivier-Maxence Prosper added 16.
The absence of Doncic and Irving proved to be costly for the Mavericks, who are now 0-4 this season when playing without their star guards. With the loss, Dallas will finish fifth in the Western Conference and face the Los Angeles Clippers in the opening round of the NBA playoffs. Both teams have one more regular-season game left before the postseason begins.
The Pistons were also missing key players due to injuries, including center Jalen Duren and five other players who were listed as out. The win against the Mavericks ended a six-game losing streak for Detroit, who had recently broken the franchise record for losses in a season. Irving’s streak of playing 31 consecutive games was halted with his absence from the lineup.
Looking ahead to their final game of the season against San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder respectively; both teams will be looking to finish strong before playoffs begin
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