[Omari Sankofa II, Detroit Free Press] Detroit Pistons rally, but can't complete road comeback at Milwaukee Bucks, 120-118

In a back-and-forth game, the Detroit Pistons nearly had the last laugh.

But a late comeback attempt ultimately fell short. The Pistons fell to the Milwaukee Bucks on the road, 120-118, despite leading by 10 points midway through the fourth quarter. They trailed by 15 in the third after a cold second quarter, but roared back thanks to big nights from two of their guards.

Cade Cunningham scored 33 points to go with eight rebounds and eight assists, and rookie Marcus Sasser added a career-high 26 points — 22 of which were scored in a red-hot second half. He finished the night shooting 11-for-17 overall and also grabbed six rebounds.

Ausar Thompson grabbed 15 rebounds, and Jalen Duren returned after missing two games with ankle soreness and tallied an 11-point, 12 rebound, five-assist double-double.

Damian Lillard caught fire late, scoring 18 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter. He answered a pair of free throws by Cunningham with a layup to cut Detroit’s lead to 115-114 with 1:39 to play. After an offensive foul by Duren, Lillard then hit a midrange jumper to give Milwaukee the lead.

Brook Lopez (14 points, four blocks) followed with a dagger 3 with 42.2 remaining that pushed the deficit to four. Cunningham responded with a 3, and the Pistons had a chance to win the game late. But Cunningham’s layup attempt was blocked by Lopez, and his attempt to save the ball landed in Milwaukee’s hands.

Jae Crowder split a pair of free throws to push Milwaukee’s lead to two, 120-118, with 3.9 seconds left. The ensuing inbounds pass to Cunningham was tipped by Crowder. Cunningham recovered the ball behind the halfcourt line, and his 52-foot heave at the buzzer fell short of the rim.

The Bucks opened the second period with an 18-4 run to extend their lead to 15. Bobby Portis caught fire, scoring13 of Milwaukee’s points during the run, right as Detroit’s shooting went cold. He hit a pair of free throws with 8:11 to play until halftime that gave the Bucks their biggest lead of the night, 42-27.

After tallying assists on their first 11 field goals, the Pistons had more turnovers (six) than assists (five) in the second quarter. But after missing seven of his first eight shot attempts, Cunningham got going on offense. He scored 13 points in the second and made eight of his next 10 field goals.

An early night

With 8:48 remaining in the third, the Giannis Antetokounmpo finished a loud dunk over Isaiah Stewart and briefly stared him down afterward. He was whistled for taunting — his second technical of the night — and left the game with 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists in 22 minutes.

His brother, Thanasis, was also whistled for a tech. Cunningham took both free throws to cut Milwaukee’s lead to single digits, 73-64.

Detroit trailed by 10 at halftime, but Cunningham and Sasser proceeded to take over the game, powering a 13-0 run that gave the Pistons a five-point advantage, 95-90, at the end of the third.

Cunningham, Sasser dominate second half

Cunningham continued rolling after halftime, scoring 13 more points in the third. An array of midrange jumpers and layups brought him to 28 points before the fourth quarter began. Sasser checked in midway through the third, and picked up the baton.

Stewart knocked down two 3-pointers to bring the Pistons within two. Sasser added to it with his own pair of 3-pointers, the first giving Detroit the lead, and the second extending it to 95-89 with less than a minute to play in the period. He got a steal and assisted a fastbreak bucket by Thompson to push it to eight, but Cameron Payne hit a 3 at the buzzer to cut it back to five.

Sasser was electric in the fourth, weaving through Milwaukee’s defense. He pulled up from midrange, drew contact and finished an and-1 layup to give their Pistons their biggest lead, 109-99, with 7:14 to play. He scored 12 of Detroit’s first 14 points in the period.

But ultimately, the Pistons fell short. Cunningham scored Detroit’s final five points — a corner 3-pointer, and a pair of free throws — cutting Milwaukee’s lead to 119-118 with 39.8 seconds left.

Duren logs double-double in return

Most of Detroit’s points in the first quarter were scored in the paint — 16 out of their 24. Duren punished Milwaukee inside early and often, finishing both a dunk and an alley-oop, along with a 3-point play, in the first eight minutes of the period.

His eighth and ninth points were scored roughly 90 seconds later, when a give-and-go with Hayes led to an open dunk that gave Detroit a 13-12 lead. He scored nine of Detroit’s first 12 points in the first, but also struggled with foul trouble and picked up his fifth late in the fourth.