Pistons take aim at road win against Celtics.
BOSTON (AP) — Avery Bradley had his homecoming, but nobody on the Pistons enjoys a trip to Boston more than Andre Drummond.
The Detroit center had season highs of 26 points and 22 rebounds on Monday night to lead Detroit to a 118-108 victory and send the Celtics to their first loss on the parquet floor since their home opener. Tobias Harris scored 31 in the matchup of old-school rivals who are once again the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
Drummond had 10 rebounds in the first quarter and 11 points in the last 5:36 to help Detroit win for the third time in four games. In 10 games in Boston, he has averaged 16.2 rebounds; it was the third time he had grabbed 22 boards in the building.
Reggie Jackson scored 20 points with seven assists for the Pistons, who opened an 11-point lead in the first quarter but needed consecutive three-point plays from Drummond down the stretch to pull away. Bradley, who played the first seven years of his career for the Celtics, received a standing ovation during pregame introductions, then scored 13 points.
Marcus Smart scored 23 points, making 6 of 9 from 3-point range, and Kyrie Irving had 18 with nine assists for the Celtics. Boston has lost two of four since a 16-game winning streak.
It was tied 100-all with 5:36 left before the Pistons pulled away thanks to Drummond. With just over three minutes left, he stole a lazy inbound pass at midcourt and drove for the dunk, drawing a foul from Irving.
The free throw made it 109-102.
It was 114-108 when Smart's long, leaning 3-point attempt rimmed out with 34 seconds left.
SPURS 115, MAVERICKS 108
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — LaMarcus Aldridge had a season-high 33 points and 10 rebounds and the San Antonio Spurs celebrated Tony Parker's first game of the season by beating the Dallas Mavericks.
Parker had six points and four assists in 14 minutes in his first appearance since tearing his right quadriceps tendon May 3 against Houston in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals.
The injury required surgery and led some to speculate Parker could miss significant time, if he came back at all. Instead, the 35-year-old returned quicker than expected to what he calls the "game I love."
Parker moved confidently, driving to the basket and making hard cuts to get away from defenders while primarily playing in the first half. He made his first two shots on hard drives to the basket.
On his first attempt, Parker made a quick stop under the basket and faked a layup, causing Maxi Kleber to fly past him before making an easy layup.
Parker then sped past rookie Dennis Smith Jr. on the left side of the lane and threw in a floater with his right hand that elicited cheers and smiles from the Spurs bench, especially from longtime teammate Manu Ginobili.
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich watched much of Parker's return on television after being ejected with 7:25 remaining in the first half.