Austin Reaves scored a season-high 43 points, and the Los Angeles Lakers edged the Detroit Pistons 121-116 on Sunday night as Luka Dončić sat out due to lower-back tightness.

With the NBA’s leading scorer in street clothes, Reaves was 14 for 27 from the floor, 4 of 6 from 3-point range and made all 11 of his free throw attempts. Despite his high usage, Reaves only had one turnover.

Detroit played within a basket or two for most of the fourth quarter, but Reaves’ 3-pointer with 46 seconds remaining put Los Angeles up 112-104, forcing the Pistons to start fouling.

Collin Sexton and Ziaire Williams each scored 17 points off the bench for the Lakers, who are 9-2 and have won five straight games. Walker Kessler had 12 points, 16 rebounds and three blocked shots.

Much of the Lakers’ success this season has been attributed to Dončić, who is averaging 40.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 7.7 assists, but Los Angeles showed some depth on Sunday.

Cade Cunningham finished with 14 points and eight assists as the Detroit starters struggled to generate offence.

Daniss Jenkins made eight 3-pointers and scored 31 points to lead the Pistons, while fellow reserve Kevin Huerter added 24 points.

The Pistons lost consecutive games for the first time this season, falling to 6-3.

 

Brown, Maxey lead 76ers over Bulls

Jaylen Brown scored 30 points, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey made key buckets down the stretch, and the Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia 76ers held off the Chicago Bulls 127-121.

After Embiid connected from the midrange, Chicago’s Isaac Okoro converted a 3-point play to cut the Bulls’ deficit to 118-116 with three minutes remaining. Like they have all season, the 76ers made plays down the stretch and improved to 9-2.

In the final three minutes, Embiid drew a foul and made a pair of free throws, then Maxey hit a step-back 3-pointer to increase Philly’s advantage. Brown made four free throws in the last minute to ice the game.

LeBron James scored 22 points to go with his five rebounds and five assists.

Maxey had 27 points and seven assists, while Embiid finished with 18 points and 10 rebounds, including eight offensive boards.

The 76ers had a 54-42 rebounding advantage over a smaller Chicago team.

Josh Giddey had 19 points, seven rebounds and 15 assists for the Bulls, who have lost seven straight amid a brutal section of their schedule that includes 10 straight games against teams that made the playoffs last season. Their next game is on Wednesday against the San Antonio Spurs.

 

Flagg scores 25, sets career high for assists

Cooper Flagg finished with 25 points and a career-best 12 assists, Kyrie Irving added 21 points, and the Dallas Mavericks rolled past the Brooklyn Nets 130-93.

Flagg’s previous career high for helpers was 11, which he did once last season and once earlier this season.

Flagg was 8 for 13 from the field, while Irving shot 9 for 15. Daniel Gafford had 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting, as the Mavs made a season-high 57.1% of their shots, allowing them to overcome their 20 turnovers.

Dallas improved to 6-4 as they opened a five-game stretch against Eastern Conference foes.

Michael Porter Jr. led the Nets with 19 points and nine rebounds, with Brooklyn falling to 2-8.