Alperen Sengun scored 29 points and the visiting Houston Rockets edged the Detroit Pistons 112-110 on Friday night.
Jalen Green supplied 28 points and Fred VanVleet had 20 points and 12 assists for the Rockets, who had lost three of their previous four games. Jabari Smith Jr. added 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Kevin Knox II and Alec Burks each scored 19 points for the Pistons, who have lost seven straight. Jaden Ivey contributed 18 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, Isaiah Stewart added 16 points and Jalen Duren chipped in 15 points and eight rebounds.
The game was tied 55-55 at halftime. Burks scored 14 points in the first half, while Green reached the 20-point mark for Houston. Sengun was the only other player in double figures with 13.
Detroit had a 12-point lead late in the half but the Rockets finished it on a 16-4 run.
The Pistons scored the first six points of the second half. They grabbed a double-digit advantage at 72-61 when Knox knocked down three free throws.
A Duren dunk with 3:05 remaining in the quarter made it 87-76. Houston then had a 9-0 spurt, including two inside baskets by Sengun, to cut its deficit to two points.
Detroit’s Killian Hayes scored the last basket of the quarter as the Pistons took a 91-88 lead into the fourth.
VanVleet made a midrange jumper to tie the game 92-92. He made two free throws 32 seconds later to put his team on top.
Duren scored inside and Burks followed with a 3-pointer to give Detroit a five-point advantage at 103-98 midway through the quarter.
Duren’s alley-oop dunk off an Ivey feed made it 107-102 with 3:53 left.
VanVleet then took over. He converted a three-point play and a 3-point shot to give Houston the lead. He added two free throws, then set up Sengun for a dunk.
Stewart made a 3-pointer in the final minute to pull the Pistons within two points. After VanVleet missed a 3-point attempt, the Pistons called timeout with 6.1 seconds left.
Ivey misfired on a 3-point try and VanVleet secured the rebound and Houston’s win.
–Field Level Media
