At 8:30 a.m. on December 29, Beijing time, the NBA regular season ushered in an extremely special game, with the Pistons challenging the Celtics away. The Pistons have set a new record for the longest losing streak in history after losing to the Nets last time out, suffering a 27-game losing streak. The team has only won 2 games so far this season, and the core Cunningham has averaged 31.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game in the last 5 games, contributing 1.4 steals on the defensive end, and shooting 41% from three-point range. However, the Pistons' overall offensive and defensive ends are too inefficient, with an offensive efficiency value of only 107.8, ranking third from the bottom in the league. Defensive efficiency is only 119, ranking fifth from the bottom in the league. Pistons center Stewart was out due to injury in this game, which may have a certain impact on the Pistons.
Compared to the Pistons, the Celtics have won three consecutive games after winning the Kings, Clippers and Lakers, and their record has risen to 23-6, ranking first in the league. And this is also a contest between the first in the league and the bottom of the league, and the disparity in strength between the two sides is very obvious. The Celtics, who rank fourth in the league and third in the league on both ends of the floor, have further strengthened their outside shooting this season, averaging 43.2 three-point attempts per game. But the Celtics weren't consistent on both ends of the floor, which is why they were able to beat the Pacers in their next game after a big win over the 76ers. And this game Brown will be absent. The Celtics fielded Tatum, Porzingis, Holiday and White and Horford. The Pistons used Cunningham, Duren, Ivey, Bogdanovic and Knox.
At the beginning of the first quarter of the game, Cunningham, the core of the Pistons, was very brave on the offensive end, scoring 8 points in a row in the paint area. Veteran Bogdanovic also seized the opportunity to attack the basket, and Ivey followed closely behind to push the fast break counterattack to succeed. The Celtics fell into a slump, Tatum struggled to break through to make kills, and hit a timely three-pointer from the outside to stabilize the situation. Pistons Ivey turned around and hit a three-pointer and made a dunk, and Duren scored with a dunk under the basket. The Celtics relied on Holiday and White, as well as Porzingis to attack the basket to close the point difference. At the end of the game, the Pistons came off the bench and Rivers hit a three-pointer to score six points in a row, but fortunately, Hauser and Tatum responded in time from the outside. The first quarter ended with the Celtics trailing the Pistons by three points, 27-30.
In the second quarter of the game, Pritchard on the Celtics bench hit a three-pointer and scored 5 points in a row, and Holiday scored 4 points in a row. The Pistons' offense suddenly broke out, Burks, Cunningham hit two three-pointers in a row, Duren, Osar, Bogdanovic and Knox, as long as the players on the floor broke through the basket one after another. This is not over, Wiseman and Ivey also played in a row at the end. Cunningham hit two three-pointers in a row in a single quarter and scored 12 points alone. The margin widened to double digits in an instant, and at halftime, the Celtics trailed the Pistons by 19 points, 47-66.
In the halftime statistics, Cunningham had 22 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists and 3 steals on 9-of-13 shooting. Ivey finished with 10 points, five rebounds and two assists on 4-of-6 shooting. Duren had 9 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Bogdanovic had 4 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Rivers 6 points. Wiseman had four points and four rebounds. On the Celtics' side, Tatum had 16 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals on 5-of-14 shooting. Holiday had 6 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. Porzingis had six points and two rebounds. Pritchard had 9 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist. Hauser had 5 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist.
In the second half of the game, Celtic directly put the starting lineup. Tatum began to exert his strength, and after failing to make consecutive attempts from the outside, Tatum firmly attacked the basket and scored 4 free throws to score 11 points in a row. The twin towers Porzingis and Horford also scored back-to-back baskets. Although the Pistons were also hot on the offensive end, Bogdanovic scored four points in a row, and Rivers hit a solid three-pointer from the outside. But the Celtics suddenly blossomed on the outside, with Porzingis, White and Horford hitting three three-pointers in a row to tie the score 15-5 in the second half.
In the final quarter of the game, White scored 6 points in the opening game, and Horford hit a solid three-point shot from the outside. The Pistons also exploded from the outside, with Bogdanovic, Cunningham and Burks hitting three three-pointers in a row to regain the lead. Porzingis and Burks responded with a three-pointer in response to each other in the half-quarter, and the two sides played inextricably together, and the difference remained within 5 points. In the last 2 minutes, Tatum broke through the pick-and-roll, and Porzingis hit a three-point shot from the outside. Pistons Ivey then made 2+1, and the outside hand fell to equalize the score. In the last 8 seconds, Tatum broke through, Porzingis turned and scored a layup, and as Tatum's jumper failed, it went into overtime!
In overtime, the offense of the two sides went back and forth, Porzingis scored under the basket, and White broke through to make 2+1. The Pistons Bogdanovic hit the basket, and Ivey hit a solid three-pointer. Until the last 2 minutes, Holiday broke through to make it 2+1, and White's outside three-pointer rose and fell, extending the lead to 4 points. The Pistons Duren made fouls under the basket, and the Celtics White and Porzingis scored one after another, and the game lost suspense. The Celtics eventually won the Pistons 128-122, and the Pistons suffered a 28-game losing streak, not only continuing to break the league's longest losing streak in a single season, but also tying the league's longest losing streak across a season.
In the game, Porzingis had 35 points and 8 rebounds on 13-of-21 shooting. Tatum had 31 points, 7 rebounds and 10 assists. White had 23 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists. On the Pistons' side, Cunningham had 31 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks on 12-of-22 shooting. Ivey had 22 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. Bogdanovic had 17 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.