Pistons post rare back-to-back wins, beat Raptors, 113-104

Detroit — It was against the Toronto Raptors that the Pistons ended their horrific 28-game losing streak, which tied an NBA record back in December.

Toronto returned to Little Caesars Arena on Wednesday hoping to avenge that loss against the Pistons. Both rosters entered this meeting looking much different than the former following active trade deadlines for both teams. But in the end, Detroit finished as the victor once again.

On a night when the Pistons hosted its annual "313 Day" to celebrate all things Detroit, the home team displayed a fourth quarter of dominance to put away the team from "The North" in a 113-104 victory. It was the Pistons' second consecutive victory and marked the third set of back-to-back wins this season.

Detroit improved to 12-53, while Toronto dropped its fifth straight game to fall to 23-43.

A wave of "ooh's and aah's" rang through the arena when Pistons rookie Marcus Sasser used his quick dribble to create space for his second of two timely 3s in the fourth quarter. The second triple gave the Pistons a 16-point lead with 4:26 remaining.

Sasser, who's usually even-keeled through the many ups and downs of a game, turned towards Detroit rapper Royce Da 5'9 and popular radio personality Angela Yee — who were sitting courtside — and flashed the 3-point sign to celebrate.

Jalen Duren's first quarter was everything you wanted from a player who picked up two early fouls. The second-year big man dominated the interior by finishing lobs and cleaning up the glass for putback dunks. He had 10 points, eight rebounds and two assists is a six-minute span before he was subbed out of the game for fouling Immanuel Quickley on a midrange jumper.

Duren had another superb outing for the Pistons with a double-double of 24 points and 23 rebounds with five assists. It marked his third game of 20 points and 20 rebounds this season. He missed just one of his nine attempts from the field and knocked down eight of 10 free throws. Despite the early foul trouble, Duren remained disciplined and only committed one foul for the remainder of the game.

Cade Cunningham added 19 points, three rebounds and six assists. Jaden Ivey had 14 points and seven assists. Isaiah Stewart made all three of his 3-pointers and totaled 15 points and two rebounds.

BOX SCORE: Pistons 113, Raptors 104

As a result of Duren's early whistles, James Wiseman's name was called early on to maintain the dominant interior presence. The former No. 2 overall pick had another good outing with six points, 10 rebounds and three rejections.

Sasser had a rough start, missing three of his first four 3-pointers, but finished the game with 11 points, five rebounds and three assists. Pistons coach Monty WIlliams nearly inserted Cunningham back into the game before Sasser's dagger 3-pointer, but allowed the rookie guard to close the game.

The Raptors were shorthanded without Scottie Barnes, R.J. Barrett and Jakob Poeltl. Immanuel Quickley shouldered the scoring load for Toronto with 23 points, five rebounds and seven assists. Former Pistons center Kelly Olynyk had an efficient outing with 17 points, six rebounds and eight assists on 7-of-10 shooting. Bruce Brown, who was selected with the 42nd overall pick in 2018 by Detroit, added 15 points, four rebounds and four assists.

Pistons rookie Ausar Thompson missed his second consecutive game on Wednesday due to a medical illness. Williams said an official update on Thompson's health will be released soon.

The Pistons trailed by as many as 16 points late in the second quarter, but trimmed that deficit to five points going into the halftime break. By the end of the fourth quarter, Detroit had its own 16-point advantage, which allowed them to cruise for the rest of the way.

Wednesday's game marked a reunion for a couple of alums from the Motor City Cruise, the Pistons' G League afflilate. Stanley Umude, who was elevated to the Pistons' main roster after signing a standard contract, reunited with Raptors center Jontay Porter, who also played for the Cruise until the Raptors signed him to a two-way contract in December.

Porter totaled 10 points, six rebounds and six assists off the bench, while Umude finished with five points and seven rebounds. Umude played 14 minutes, but his best moment occured on the final play of the thrid quarter as he drained a corner 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded. The moment was created by a timely block by Wiseman on the other end.

The Pistons are nearly finished with their longest homestand of the season and will conclude their six-game stint at Little Caesars Arena with a two-game series against the Miami Heat on Friday and Sunday. It'll be an opportunity to even the season series at two games apiece after dopping the first two meetings in Miami.

mcurtis@detroitnews.com

@MikeACurtis2