By Dave Hart
LocalSportsJournal.com
Pistons 103, Nuggets 86 – The Pistons jumped out to an early commanding lead and held it throughout against the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.
Detroit led 29-12 after the first quarter, 51-44 at halftime and 77-67 after the third frame.
Andre Drummond paced the Pistons with 19 points and 20 rebounds while Marcus Morris added 15 points.
Detroit’s Jon Leuer chipped in with 15 points off the bench and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope contributed with 13 points.
The Nuggets were led in a losing effort by Wilson Chandler with 21 points off the bench.
The Pistons are now 4-2 on the season, good for fourth place in the Eastern Conference behind defending NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers, who are off to a 6-0 start.
Detroit will head out to the west coast for a four-game road trip starting Monday night against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Record: 4-2
2nd Place in Central Division (2 games behind Cleveland)
4th Place in Eastern Conference (2 games behind Cleveland)
Magic # to clinch a playoff spot: 76
Magic # to clinch a Central Division title: 79
Magic # to clinch a regular season Eastern Conference title: 79
Next Game: 11/07/2016 @ Los Angeles Clippers 10:30 p.m. @ Staples Center
Stats: Andre Drummond 19 points 20 rebounds 3 blocks, Marcus Morris 15 points, Jon Leuer 15 points, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 13 points, Stanley Johnson 12 points, Ish Smith 11 points 8 assists.
