Philadelphia 76ers vs Detroit Pistons Box Score on Oct 23, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Oct 23, 2017

DETROIT -- Ben Simmons recorded a triple-double in his fourth career game, and the Philadelphia Sixers collected their first win of the season, downing the Detroit Pistons 97-86 on Monday at Little Caesars Arena.

Simmons, the top pick in the 2016 draft, piled up 21 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists. He missed all of last season after undergoing foot surgery but has double-doubles in each of his first four games.

Joel Embiid powered for 30 points and nine rebounds, while Robert Covington added 13 points for Philadelphia (1-3).

Reggie Jackson led Detroit (2-2) with 17 points and seven assists, and he added six rebounds. Avery Bradley supplied 15 points for the Pistons, and Andre Drummond contributed 14 points with 14 rebounds.

The Pistons chipped away at a 13-point halftime deficit during the third quarter. An 8-1 spurt, capped by a Drummond dunk and tip-in, cut the Sixers' lead to 64-56. Detroit eventually pulled within six, but a Simmons dunk made it 75-67 entering the fourth.

The Pistons got within three on three occasions early in the final quarter before a Covington three-point play provided some breathing room. Simmons then fired a cross-court pass to T.J. McConnell for a 3-pointer, extending Philadelphia's lead to 87-78.

A Covington 3-pointer nudged the lead to double digits again at 90-80. The Pistons scored the next six points, but free throws by Simmons and Embiid stopped the run. Simmons then found Embiid for a layup to notch the triple-double.

Embiid and Simmons combined for 28 first-half points as the Sixers raced to a 56-43 halftime lead.

A 3-pointer by Embiid at the end of the first quarter kicked off a 23-8 Philadelphia run. Jerryd Bayless drained back-to-back 3-pointers to finish it off, giving his club a 51-30 advantage. The Pistons finished the half with an 11-3 spurt.

NOTES: Pistons C Boban Marjanovic was inactive. ... Detroit C Andre Drummond, a career 38.3 percent free-throw shooter, is now 10-for-12 from the line this season. "I think it's real," coach Stan Van Gundy said of Drummond's improved stroke. "What it allows us to do is have him on the floor at the end of games." ... Pistons SG Reggie Bullock served the fourth game of his five-game suspension for violating the league's anti-drug policy. ... Sixers PG Markelle Fultz, the first overall pick in the 2017 draft, is showing his age in the early going, according to coach Brett Brown. "He's a great person, he wants to be coached, it's just life in real time in the NBA at 19 can catch lots of people off guard," Brown said. Fultz scored two points in 16 minutes Monday.