CHICAGO — The Detroit Pistons’ historic night came at the expense of the Chicago Bulls, in front of a dejected group of home fans.
At one point, though, the United Center crowd was loud as fans stood on their feet with excitement. Nikola Vučević had just hit a floater to bring the Bulls within 43 points and stopped the bleeding on a 23-0 Pistons run. To make matters worse for Chicago, two minutes remained in the first half.
Detroit (28-26) beat the Bulls, 132-92, notched its most lopsided first half in over half a century and set the tone for the first night of back-to-back games against Chicago (22-32). The two-game series will mark the Pistons’ final matchups before entering the All-Star break. They have a chance to end the pre-All-Star break portion of their season with a four-game win streak.
“They’re a team that has pride, that has talented NBA players,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said postgame. “They’re going to come out ready to go tomorrow, so we can’t worry about or focus on tonight. It’s over with. Our focus has to be, can we double this up? Can we come out with the same mentality, the same mindset to carry that momentum. Because, if you don’t, the momentum can halt and go the other way.”
The momentum Detroit built starting in the first half allowed its starters to rest for the whole fourth quarter. The Pistons entered the final 12 minutes of the game up 105-59, allowing second-unit players to get more minutes without having to come out. Marcus Sasser played 11 minutes in the final period, where he shot 5 of 5 from the field and made 4 of 4 from 3-point range for 14 points.
Late in the second quarter, the United Center seemed to be in shock leading up to Vučević’s bucket. By the time the buzzer sounded to end the first half, Detroit held a 71-29 lead. The 42-point advantage was the Pistons’ biggest halftime lead in franchise history, eclipsing their previous record of 34 set in 1969 against Chicago. Detroit’s bench alone outscored the Bulls as a team during the first half.
Many of the trends that have been consistent throughout the season for Detroit were seen on Tuesday. Cade Cunningham had 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting, seven assists, six rebounds, a block, zero turnovers and was a plus-34 in 27 minutes. Ausar Thompson excelled defensively and scored in double figures for the 10th time in 12 outings. Malik Beasley’s seven 3-pointers were three off from matching Chicago’s total. He scored a game-high 24 points and set the team’s franchise record for 3s made in a single season (currently at 212).
“Honestly, man, I didn’t think I was going to do it this fast,” Beasley said after the game. “…Just keep putting in the work, keep grinding and the work will show.”
Beasley sported the team’s “BTA” WWE belt, given out after each win to the player who had the biggest impact.
The three that gave @mbeasy5 the most in a season in franchise history‼️ pic.twitter.com/KLFKydtwBD
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) February 12, 2025
The Pistons kept their intensity from start to finish, taking the Bulls’ hope early and never giving it back.
“I think locking in on defense, getting stops and running,” Thompson said of the team’s recent hot starts. “Everything starts with defense because you get a stop, get a rebound and push it. You don’t want to get (the ball) out of the net against a set defense all night, so I feel like when we do that, we’re at our best.”
And who better to emphasize the importance of defense than Thompson? He’s leading the team in steals, and his 108.2 defensive rating is the lowest of any starter on the team. Six Pistons players scored in double figures by the end of the game.
One of the things Bickerstaff was most pleased with postgame was his team’s refusal to ease up on Chicago. Detroit jumped out to a 39-15 first-quarter lead over the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday. But outside of the opening period, the Hornets outscored the Pistons in the final three. Bickerstaff was clear that effort wouldn’t be tolerated.
“Step by step, learning from last game,” Bickerstaff said. “Coming out of the game the same way, I thought we did a great job to start the game in that first quarter. But, unlike the other night, we held ourselves to the standard for 48 minutes.
“So, for the guys to talk about it, for it to mean something to them and then for them to go out and execute it, just shows the growth and what we’re capable of.”
(Photo: Luke Hales/Getty Images)
