Thanks to a fast start, Detroit secures its first victory in more than a month

James Wiseman had 18 points and 14 rebounds as the Detroit Pistons ended an 11-game losing streak with a 117-97 win over the visiting Indiana Pacers on Monday night.

The Pistons, who had not won since beating San Antonio in double overtime Feb. 10, led by 31 points in the first half and held off an Indiana surge late in the second quarter and early in the third.

The Pacers had beaten Detroit, 121-115, at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday night.

“When you come in having lost 11 or 12 games in a row — whatever it was — you know you have to stay focused to win a game,” said Cory

Joseph, who scored a game-high 22 points for Detroit. “We played extremely hard and got off to a great start.”

Jalen Duren put up 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons, and Killian Hayes had 10 points and 11 assists.

Detroit’s win was its first against a Central Division opponent this season after posting 12 straight losses.

“Our guys played with a lot of grit tonight, and I think we surprised the Pacers a little bit,” Pistons Coach Dwane Casey said. “This was a little like the playoffs — we made some adjustments from Saturday and they made some adjustments — but the difference was our toughness.”

Jordan Nwora had 20 points off the bench for Indiana.

Detroit had a 20-6 edge on points in the paint and a 15-7 rebounding advantage as it outscored the Pacers 38-20 in the first quarter.

Eugene Omoruyi, making his third NBA start, scored 11 of his 17 points in the opening quarter.

Detroit led 52-23 after four minutes of the second quarter, but Indiana was back within 67-49 at halftime.

The Pacers cut their deficit to 69-57 early in the third quarter, but Detroit answered with a 13-point run to go up by 25. ROCKETS 111, CELTICS

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109: Jalen Green scored 28 points, rookie Jabari Smith Jr. added 24, and Houston withstood a late charge to win at home against Boston.

The Rockets, who are tied with Detroit for the fewest wins with 16, snapped a three-game skid despite the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown scoring a season-high 43 points.

Jayson Tatum scored 22 points for Boston but missed a layup at the buzzer. Malcolm Brogdon added 20 points for the Celtics.

Kenyon Martin Jr. had 20 points and eight rebounds for Houston. Kevin Porter Jr. added 14 points and 13 assists.

HEAT 119, JAZZ 115: Jimmy l

Butler scored 24 points to lead seven Miami players in double figures, Tyler Herro and Gabe Vincent scored 18 apiece, and the Heat held off visiting Utah.

Bam Adebayo scored 16 points for Miami, and Victor Oladipo and Kevin Love each had 11. Caleb Martin contributed 10 points.

Lauri Markkanen scored 38 points for the Jazz, which also got 23 from Simone Fontecchio. Miami was 31 for 36 from the foul line; the Jazz was 13 for 18.

Talen Horton-tucker put Utah on top on a short jumper with 1:16 left, but Herro gave Miami the lead right back on a three-pointer with 55.3 seconds remaining. It stayed a two-point game until the final seconds; Ochai Agbaji missed a short shot in the lane that was contested by Adebayo, who got the rebound, was fouled and made two free throws with six seconds left to seal the win. TIMBERWOLVES 136,

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HAWKS 115: Anthony Edwards scored 32 points in his hometown, Kyle Anderson had his third career triple-double, and Minnesota cruised past the Hawks in Atlanta.

Trae Young finished with 41 points for the Hawks, who dropped to 3-5 under Coach Quin Snyder. Atlanta went 4 for 22 beyond the arc and handed out 17 assists compared with 39 for Minnesota.

Mike Conley finished with 21 points for the Timberwolves. GRIZZLIES 104, MAVER

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ICKS 88: In Dallas, Desmond Bane scored 23 points as Memphis won a second consecutive game against the Mavericks.

Luka Doncic (left calf strain) and Kyrie Irving (right foot soreness) were out for Dallas with injuries, and Ja Morant remained away from the Grizzlies because of his issues off the court.

Memphis rookie David Roddy scored 19 points on 8-for-11 shooting. Mavericks rookie Jaden Hardy had 28 points.