Griffin’s 50 leads Pistons
Blake Griffin scored a career-high 50 points and had the game-winner after he was fouled on a driving layup with 1.8 seconds left as the Pistons topped the Philadelphia 76ers, 133-132, in a wild overtime thriller last night in Detroit.
JJ Redick’s four-point play with 5.6 seconds left in overtime set up Griffin’s dramatics, while Joel Embiid, who had 33 points and 11 rebounds, missed a potential game-winner at the buzzer.
Redick had 30 points and scored a 3-pointer while being fouled by Reggie Jackson after the Pistons point guard made two free throws to take a 130-128 lead.
The 76ers were without Ben Simmons, out because of back tightness.
Griffin faked a handoff on the final play and drove the lane for the basket, getting fouled by Robert Covington. He made the ensuing free throw for the win.
Griffin was 20-of-35 from the field, going 5-for-10 on 3-pointers, scoring his most points as a member of the PIstons for the second straight game.
He scored 22 points in the second quarter and had 28 in the half, despite missing his first six free throws. He also dunked on Embiid with 3:50 to go in the second quarter.
Jackson had 23 points and Ish Smith scored 21 for the Pistons, who are 3-0 for the first time since 2015-16, the last time they made the playoffs.
In overtime, Griffin and Smith had 3-pointers to give the Pistons a 126-120 lead. But Redick had a traditional three-point play and then a 3-pointer as the 76ers tied it at 128-all with 2:03 left.
Detroit took the lead for the first time since late in the first quarter as two Griffin free throws put the Pistons up 111-110 with 3:09 remaining. Then, down the stretch of regulation, the teams traded the lead six times, with three ties.
Markelle Fultz tied his career high with 13 points, knocking down a long twopointer for the game’s first points and later making his second career 3-pointer.
Reggie Jackson added 17 points for the Pistons.
Pelicans 116, Clippers 109 —
Anthony Davis highlighted a 34-point and 13-rebound performance with a clutch 3 with less than two minutes remaining, and host New Orleans remained unbeaten through three games by beating Los Angeles.
New Orleans won for the first time when Nikola Mirotic struggled from 3-point range. He was 0-for-6 from deep, but still managed to score 18 points and grab 12 rebounds.
Elfrid Payton scored 20, including a 3 that made it 113-103 with just less than a minute to go. Julius Randle added 18 points before fouling out with 2:17 to go.
Tobias Harris scored 26 points and Danilo Gallinari 24 for the Clippers, who were playing their first road game of the season after winning their previous two at home. Lou Williams added 17 points for Los Angeles, which narrowly outshot New Orleans but was done in by 17 turnovers.
Elsewhere in the NBA —
The Chicago Bulls said point guard Kris Dunn will miss four to six weeks because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee.
Coach Fred Hoiberg said yesterday that Dunn was injured going for a layup in the second quarter of Monday’s loss at Dallas. Dunn stayed in and finished with nine points and seven assists after missing the first two games of the season for the birth of his first child . ... Nuggets forward Will Barton underwent surgery to fix core and hip muscle injuries. He will be re-evaluated in six weeks, the team announced. The surgery was performed by Dr. William Meyers in Philadelphia.