Cade Cunningham had 29 points and 13 assists, and the Detroit Pistons pulled away to rout the New York Knicks 121-90 on Monday night and exact some revenge for last season’s play-off defeat.

The game was the first meeting since the Knicks eliminated the Pistons in Game 6 of their first-round play-off series.

The Knicks trailed by just one after the first quarter, but the deficit grew to 10 by half-time and to 20 by the end of the third quarter.

Ausar Thompson was the only other Pistons’ starter to score in double figures, at 10 points and seven rebounds, as East-leading Detroit (27-9) gave plenty of minutes to its reserves in the second half.

Javonte Green had 17 points off the bench for the Pistons, while Jaden Ivey added 16.

Jalen Brunson led the way for New York with 25 points but had six turnovers and no assists.

The loss was the fourth in a row for the Knicks (23-13), who dropped from second place in the Eastern Conference to third as the Boston Celtics passed them.

 

Short-handed Nuggets edge 76ers in OT

Jalen Pickett made seven 3-pointers to finish with a team-high 29 points, and Bruce Brown made a go-ahead layup with five seconds remaining to overtime to lift the Denver Nuggets over the Philadelphia 76ers 125-124.

Remarkably, the Nuggets (24-12) secured the road win despite playing without any of their opening-night starters being active.

Nikola Jokić and Cameron Johnson remain out for the Nuggets with long-term injuries, and Jamal Murray got the night off after playing 40 minutes on Sunday despite an ankle injury. Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun each returned on Sunday from lengthy absences but sat out Monday’s game on the second night of a back-to-back.

Peyton Watson finished with 24 points and seven rebounds, while Zeke Nnaji added 21 points off the bench.

Joel Embiid had 32 points and 10 rebounds for the 76ers (19-15), and Tyrese Maxey scored 28 points to go with his four steals.

 

Durant’s 3 lifts Rockets over Suns

Kevin Durant hit a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining to beat his former team as the Houston Rockets defeated the Phoenix Suns 100-97.

Durant had struggled from deep before hitting the game-winner, making just 1 of 11 from 3-point range before sinking the clutch triple. He finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and four assists as the Rockets (22-11) improved to 3-0 against the Suns this season.

Jabari Smith Jr. and Amen Thompson each scored 17 points for the Rockets, but it was Houston’s defence and rebounding that made the difference.

Phoenix led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter but scored only 37 points in the second half and was out-rebounded 51-40 in the game.

Devin Booker led the way for the Suns (21-15) with 27 points. Dillon Brooks and Royce O’Neale each added 15.