With the Pistons in search of the team’s first win on the road in Houston, Detroit found out it would be a physical affair right from the jump. In the first quarter, Ausar Thompson was hit with a pair of personal fouls after just a bit of light contact, and his replacement, Ron Holland II, managed to pick up three fouls in his own right shortly thereafter. 

From that point, it became clear right away that the Pistons would need to manage its bench wisely against a dangerous, tall Rockets lineup headlined by Kevin Durant. The Rockets opened the game with its all-big lineup, but Detroit did a quality job of battling Houston for rebounds and loose balls, often coming up with sneaky, hustle-driven plays versus the length-laden squad. 

During the second quarter, Ausar Thompson found himself tangled in a loose ball race with a nearby Rocket, and that hustle-play ended abruptly with a testy, physical deviation of play. Not long after, Ausar’s brother Amen found himself engaged in a physical wrap-up with Detroit center Jalen Duren under the basket.

Nearly immediately after, Duren upped the ante with a swim move across Thompson’s body that wound up with the 6-10 big man’s powerful left elbow striking Amen square in the head for a personal-turned-flagrant two foul. As a result, Duren was ejected from the game before halftime, and the Pistons had to manage a weakened frontcourt when the squad already entered the game without Marcus Sasser and Caris LeVert, who were both injured and unavailable to face the Rockets. 

Cade Cunningham’s Near-Triple Double Pushes Pistons Over Rockets For Detroit’s First Win, 115-111 The Pistons held off the Rockets for a four-point win in what was a physical, contentious matchup.

So, the Pistons were without three key players before halftime, and that total could grow to four if you include Jaden Ivey, an explosive guard who’s still recovering from knee surgery. To say that Detroit had to juggle its lineup as a result of these circumstances against the Rockets would be a bit of an understatement. 

In the third quarter, Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart, who was filling in for Duren, picked up his fifth foul of the night, and that tightened the Pistons’ rotation even further. Paul Reed saw a regular string of minutes after halftime, though he performed at a high level with 13 points and nine rebounds in the win. Javonte Green also logged 17 minutes before the fourth started, and it’s reasonable to assert that wouldn’t have been the case on a normal night.

In the fourth, Holland and Stewart ended up fouling out of the game, but the pair had already contributed mightily up to that point and were pivotal in their roles en route to Detroit’s first win of the regular season. 

The Pistons will host the Boston Celtics at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit at 3:30 pm on Sunday, Oct. 26 in the club’s home opener. 

For more information on the latest Detroit Pistons team or player news, follow @EricJRutter on X for continued basketball coverage.