Hayes leads Pistons in upset win over Mavs

Burst of back-to-back three-pointers the difference in thrilling overtime tussle

A late burst of scoring from Killian Hayes spurred the Detroit Pistons to a thrilling 131-125 NBA overtime victory against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks.

Hayes drained back-to-back three-pointers with just over a minute of overtime remaining to hand Detroit the win in a pulsating finish at the Pistons’ Little Caesars Arena.

Hayes, who ended the game with 22 points, four rebounds and eight assists, nailed a 27-foot three-pointer with just over a minute left to put Detroit ahead 128-125. The 21-year-old then hit a superb step-back triple to seal the victory for the struggling Pistons, who improved to 6-18.

“Seeing the first one go in felt good … just felt ready to shoot another, and we got the W [win],” Hayes said of his overtime heroics. “Just feels good to get the win.”

“We didn’t fold. Overtime, we played strong, played our defence and hit shots. We deserved that one.”

Pistons coach Dwane Casey has always stressed Hayes’ value does not come from his shot.

“We need a point guard who can play quarterback on the floor,” Casey said. “We don’t have a lot of one-on-one players, so we need that quarterback to organise the offence and make sure everyone is getting touches.

“He’s our best playmaker, he’s our best point guard and he’s our best defender against point guards. That’s what we need from him.”

Hayes’ pair of game-clinching threes came after a towering performance from Bojan Bogdanovic helped Detroit stay within reach as Dallas star Doncic threatened to take over.

Bogdanovic finished with 30 points including five three-pointers, with four rebounds and four assists. Sixteen of Bogdanovic’s points came in the third quarter as he traded buckets with Doncic, who led all scorers with 35 points.