NBA: Jalen Duren pours in 31 as Pistons pull away from Raptors

Jalen Duren scored 31 points and grabbed nine rebounds as the Detroit Pistons defeated the Toronto Raptors 127-116 on Tuesday night at home.

Daniss Jenkins added 21 points, five rebounds, and five assists for Eastern Conference-leading Detroit (55-21), which recorded its 10th win in 13 games. Duncan Robinson contributed 19 points, while Tobias Harris added 12 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Caris LeVert chipped in 12 points, and Paul Reed finished with 10. Despite committing 21 turnovers, the Pistons shot 60.3% from the field and secured the Central Division title for the first time since 2007-08.

RJ Barrett led Toronto with 24 points and six rebounds. Brandon Ingram scored 22 points, Sandro Mamukelashvili had 16, and Collin Murray-Boyles posted a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors (42-33). Toronto was coming off a 139-87 win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday.

Detroit, coming off an overtime loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, was missing only All-Star Cade Cunningham (collapsed lung) from its starting lineup. Duren, who sat out Monday, scored 17 points by halftime as the Pistons held a 59-54 lead, shooting 61.1% from the field. Barrett led Toronto with 18 first-half points.

The Pistons pulled away in the third quarter. Harris’ layup off an Ausar Thompson feed made it 71-60, and Robinson’s layup with a Harris assist stretched the lead to 15 points. Robinson hit a 3-pointer with 5:20 left in the quarter to push the lead to 86-66, followed by another deep shot moments later.

Detroit maintained control entering the fourth quarter, leading 100-81. Reed’s layup with 7:25 remaining made it 115-92. Toronto closed the gap with a 12-0 run, reaching 115-104 on A.J. Lawson’s layup with 4:19 left. Robinson answered with a 3-pointer, and Duren added inside baskets to seal the victory.

-Field Level Media/Reuters