In the 15th NBA game played in Mexico City all-time, Detroit Pistons stars Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren posted two of the most outstanding performances in the international series so far in Detroit’s 122-110 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night. 

In the “Dia De Los Muertos” themed affair, Cunningham kept the Pistons offense running smoothly with 18 assists in the win, and Duren was the beneficiary of a lot of those helpers. Cunningham connected with Duren on a couple lobs early, and the Pistons center kept pouring in the dunks en route to a career-high 33 points. Now, Cunningham himself tied a career high with 18 assists, so the Pistons pair were playing at the top of their ability against Dallas south of the border. 

In the first quarter, Cunningham wasted little time in linking up with Duren early with a few lob plays, then Duncan Robinson chipped in with one of his three triples on the night. From the Dallas perspective, D’Angelo Russell came in off the bench, but he started off hot in the first quarter on his way to a 10-for-17 shooting night from the floor, eventually ending with 31 points in the loss. 

Entering the second quarter, the Mavericks held a three-point lead, but the Pistons kept involving Duren in the offense and Detroit began to really stretch its lead in paint points. Tobias Harris made a series of baskets as well to give the Pistons a 10-point lead with 3:22 left in the half, several of which came near the rim to further bolster Detroit’s paint totals. Duren was the game’s leading scorer at halftime with 17 points, but Cunningham was well on his way to another double-double with eight points and eight assists at the break. Harris contributed 11 points and five rebounds as well by that point as Detroit trailed Dallas by two at halftime. 

Isaiah Stewart ‘Excited’ For Pistons Game Against Mavs In Mexico City The Detroit Pistons will play a game on international turf later tonight.

Early in the third quarter, Harris was given a questionable injury designation due to a sore right ankle from an incident during the game, but the Pistons forward returned to play after a few minutes of treatment. Cunningham continued distributing the ball wall after the break, and that was a dominant theme throughout the Detroit win overall as the squad only committed eight turnovers on the night. 

Although the Pistons trailed by six entering the fourth quarter, Detroit ramped up the defensive intensity once again, and Isaiah Stewart delivered a powerful block, his second of the night, to deny a surefire Mavs’ basket early on. That defensive stand set up a key three-pointer from Javonte Green, and Ausar Thompson followed that up with a deft left-handed floater in the lane to help Detroit climb back into the driver’s seat. 

Down the stretch, Cunningham and Duren kept their feet on the gas pedal and were reliable from both the free throw line and the field as they guided the Pistons to a comfortable 12-point win far away from Michigan even though Detroit was technically listed as the home squad for Saturday night’s victory.

Moving to 4-2 on the season, the Detroit Pistons will travel to Memphis on Monday, Nov. 3 for an 8 pm contest against the Grizzlies. 

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