After a heartbreaking defeat to the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday, the Detroit Pistons (6-8) bounced back with a 99-95 victory over the Toronto Raptors (2-11) at Scotiabank Arena on Friday night.

The Pistons are now 2-0 during the NBA's in-season tournament for East Group B, having won two of their last three games.

The first half was a back-and-forth contest, featuring nine ties and eight lead changes. The Pistons relied upon their ball movement to register 12 first-half assists and held a 55-52 lead entering halftime. Cade Cunningham accounted for half of Detroit's assists (seven), as he continues to be the Pistons' primary facilitator.

He came into the game averaging 8.5 assists and tied with Tyrese Haliburton for sixth-best in the league. He finished the game with 10 dimes to go along with 15 points and six rebounds.

Jaden Ivey returned from his one-game absence due to a right toe sprain and led the Pistons in the first half, where he scored nine of his 14 points. Tobias Harris matched Ivey's first-half production en route to an 11-point performance. But his most significant contribution came while recording 11 rebounds.

However, as solid of a performance as the Pistons had in the first half, Detroit allowed Toronto to establish momentum, which nearly resulted in its third win. The Raptors began the third quarter on a 14-5 run and outscored the Pistons 26-18.

Jakob Poeltl continued to dominate the Pistons by scoring 10 points during the period, which helped Toronto take a 79-73 advantage into the fourth quarter. He scored a season-high 25 points and had 19 rebounds. R.J. Barrett added 20 and seven assists, while Gradey Dick finished with 16 despite 1-of-10 shooting from behind the arc.

Malik Beasley kept the Pistons afloat early in the fourth frame by scoring seven of the team's first 11 points. However, at the 8:18 mark, his night was disrupted due to an undisclosed injury. He scored a team-high 22 points, which ignited a 19-7 run for the Pistons.

Cunningham and Marcus Sasser nailed back-to-back triples to give the Pistons a 93-85 lead with five minutes left. Six players scored in double figures, as Jalen Duren and Tobias Harris each scored 11. Ron Holland II added 10 off the bench.

The Pistons could have cruised to their sixth victory of the season. However, they continued to struggle to close a game. Detroit held a 97-89 lead with 2:56 left when the Raptors went on a 6-0 run during the final seconds and trailed 97-95 with a minute remaining. However, the Pistons survived following a missed 3-point field goal by Dick.

Up next

The Pistons will close their three-game road trip against the Washington Wizards on Sunday. It will be the fifth back-to-back set of the season, which will conclude with a home contest against the Chicago Bulls. Tip-off between the Pistons and Wizards is slated for 6 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena.

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