• The Detroit Pistons beat the Toronto Raptors, 117-105, on Friday night.
• Jalen Duren had 19 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Pistons, while Tim Hardaway Jr. had a team-high 23 points.
• The Pistons will be at least a 6-seed in the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

TORONTO — The Detroit Pistons are playoff-bound.

The Pistons clinched a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs on Friday, defeating the Toronto Raptors, 117-105. Without four of their top players, they handed business at Scotiabank Arena and added another cherry to one of the most rewarding seasons in franchise history.

Tim Hardaway Jr. led the Pistons with 23 points. Malik Beasley (21 points), Jalen Duren (19 points, 16 rebounds and six assists), Ausar Thompson (15 points, seven rebounds, four assists), Dennis Schroder (12 points, seven assists) and Marcus Sasser (10 points) also scored in double figures.

The Pistons were once again without star guard Cade Cunningham, who missed his sixth straight game with a left shin contusion. Tobias Harris (right heel soreness) was also out, his third absence in four games, and Isaiah Stewart served the final game of a two-game suspension. Jaden Ivey, of course, is still out since breaking his right fibula on New Years.

THE POSTSEASON: Pistons complete epic turnaround, clinch playoff spot with win over Raptors

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Toronto was also severely shorthanded, missing Brandon Ingram (left ankle sprain), Scottie Barnes (right hand, MCL joint contusion), RJ Barrett (rest), Gradey Dick (right knee bone bruise) and Ochai Agbaji (rest). Their rotation included four rookies (Ja’Kobe Walter, Jamison Battle, Jonathan Mogbo and Jamal Shead) and two two-way players (former Piston Jared Rhoden and A.J. Lawson). 

Walter led the Raptors with 22 points, and Jacob Poeltl added 10 points and 11 rebounds.

The Pistons took control of the game in the second and third quarters, taking a game-high 22-point lead with 8:28 left in the third after a 29-9 run. They closed the first half with a 15-7 run, and then opened the second half with an 11-0 run to crack the 20-point lead threshold, 76-55. 

They were unable to put the game away early, though. Five turnovers in the final six minutes of the third quarter helped fuel a 20-6 Raptors run that whittled the lead to eight, 85-77, with three minutes remaining in the period. That momentum carried into the fourth, which they opened with a 14-2 run to get within four, 95-91, with eight minutes to play in the game. 

A 3-point play by Shead with 1:56 remaining cut it to six, 109-103, but Schroder followed with a layup, and a pair of free throws at the 1:17 mark to push it back to 10, 113-103.

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Pistons clinch top-six seed

It has been nearly 20 years since the Pistons clinched a playoff seed higher than eighth. They last did so during the 2007-08 season, when they finished the regular season as the No. 2 seed, then advanced to the Eastern Conference finals. That series also marked the franchise’s most recent playoff victory. In the three playoff appearances since (2009, 2016, 2019), they were the eighth seed each time and were swept in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers, Cavaliers again and the Milwaukee Bucks, respectively. 

It’s one of the most impressive single-season turnarounds in NBA history. Just a year ago, they won a franchise-low 14 games and endured an NBA-record 28-game losing streak. They’re now the first NBA team ever to triple its win total from the previous season. With five games remaining, they need two more wins to set their highest win total since that 2007-08 season (they won 44 games in 2015-16).

With the win, the Pistons pulled into fifth place in the East by themselves, half a game ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks. They remained three games behind the current fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers. In the postseason, the sixth seed faces the 3-seed (currently the New York Knicks) while the fourth and fifth seeds face off in a best-of-seven series. 

THJ continues late-season heater 

Friday was Hardaway’s fourth consecutive game scoring at least 20 points. Prior to the run, he had reached the 20-point threshold four times this season. On Friday, he did so in his usual fashion — lighting it up from 3. 

His biggest shot of the night was a deep 3-pointer to beat the third-quarter buzzer, extending the Pistons’ lead to 16 entering the final period. In his past four games, he’s 20-for-36 (55.6%) from 3. 

Make “The Pistons Pulse” your go-to Detroit Pistons podcast, listen available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify).

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