Atlanta Hawks at Detroit Pistons
· National Basketball AssociationCunningham stars late as the Pistons hang on to beat the Hawks 99-98
Atlanta had a chance to win with 0.1 seconds left, but Jalen Johnson couldn't convert a tip-in as time expired.
Jalen Duren had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons, who won for the 15th time in 17 games. Caris LeVert added 14 points and made two key defensive plays down the stretch.
Johnson had 29 points and 13 rebounds for Atlanta, which had won four of five. Nickeil Alexander-Walker added 26 points and Onyeka Okongwu scored 20.
Neither team led by more than five points until LeVert made it 74-68 with the last basket of the third quarter.
Detroit created possessions with relentless pressure on the glass — it had more offensive rebounds than Atlanta had defensive rebounds for much of the game — but gave them back with 22 turnovers in the first three quarters.
Alexander-Walker's 3-pointer tied it at 82 with 7:06 to play, but Cunningham's short jumper put the Pistons up 91-89 with 3:21 to go. LeVert forced turnovers on the next two Atlanta possessions. He turned the first one into a layup, and Cunningham hit two free throws on the second.
That made it 95-89, but Cunningham missed a 3-pointer, and Johnson and Alexander-Walker hit back-to-back 3s to tie the game with 1:12 left.
Cunningham's jumper made it 97-95, and Alexander-Walker missed at the other end. Cunningham then converted a reverse layup in traffic with 17 seconds to play.
Alexander-Walker made another 3-pointer to make it 99-98 with 1.2 seconds left. Daniss Jenkins missed two free throws, and the Hawks called a timeout with 0.1 seconds left.
Pistons: Visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday.
Regular Season Series
DET leads series 2-0
Recent Plays
| 4th 0.0 | ![]() |
End of Game | 98 - 99 |
| 4th 0.0 | ![]() |
End of the 4th Quarter | 98 - 99 |
| 4th 0.1 | ![]() |
Keaton Wallace enters the game for Mouhamed Gueye | 98 - 99 |
| 4th 0.1 | ![]() |
Luke Kennard enters the game for Dyson Daniels | 98 - 99 |
| 4th 0.1 | ![]() |
Ausar Thompson enters the game for Daniss Jenkins | 98 - 99 |
Statistics
ATL |
DET |
|
|---|---|---|
| 38-89 | FG | 38-86 |
| 43 | Field Goal % | 44 |
| 14-40 | 3PT | 5-26 |
| 35 | Three Point % | 19 |
| 8-11 | FT | 18-24 |
| 73 | Free Throw % | 75 |
| 34 | Rebounds | 60 |
| 7 | Offensive Rebounds | 18 |
| 27 | Defensive Rebounds | 42 |
| 27 | Assists | 18 |
| 15 | Steals | 11 |
| 4 | Blocks | 9 |
| 13 | Turnovers | 22 |
| 2 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 15 | Total Turnovers | 23 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 17 | Points Conceded Off Turnovers | 20 |
| 13 | Fast Break Points | 21 |
| 42 | Points in Paint | 58 |
| 16 | Fouls | 12 |
| 5 | Largest Lead | 7 |
Detroit Pistons Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Ronald Holland II, F | Day-To-Day | Dec 25 |
| Isaac Jones, C | Day-To-Day | Dec 23 |
Atlanta Hawks Injuries
| NAME, POS | STATUS | DATE |
|---|---|---|
| Mouhamed Gueye, F | Day-To-Day | Dec 25 |
| N'Faly Dante, C | Out | Dec 23 |
| Eli John Ndiaye, C | Out | Dec 21 |
| Kristaps Porzingis, C | Out | Dec 14 |
Game Information
Location: Detroit, MI
Attendance: 19,008 · Capacity:
2025-26 Southeast Standings
| TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orlando |
17 | 13 | .567 | - | W1 |
Miami |
15 | 15 | .500 | 2 | L3 |
Atlanta |
15 | 16 | .484 | 2.5 | L4 |
Charlotte |
10 | 20 | .333 | 7 | W1 |
Washington |
5 | 23 | .179 | 11 | L2 |
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