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By Bryan Colbert Jr.
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Luka Doncic scored at least 40 points in each of the Lakers’ first four games in November. With Doncic sidelined Sunday in Detroit, Austin Reaves kept that streak going himself.
Reaves scored 43 points, grabbed five rebounds and handed out four assists as Los Angeles held off the Pistons 121-116 at Little Caesars Arena.
The Lakers improved to 9-2 with their fifth straight win and earned their first victory in Detroit since November 2023.
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Doncic sat out the opener of a back-to-back with lower back tightness, two nights after scoring 53 points against Portland. Reaves had added 25 in that win.
With Luka Doncic sidelined, Reaves led the Lakers with 43 points on 14-of-27 shooting against Detroit. He made four of his six attempts from beyond the arc and all 11 of his free throws.
Los Angeles built much of its lead while Reaves was still working his way into the game. He scored eight points in a first quarter the Lakers won 38-14.
Detroit had entered the night 6-2 and had beaten Los Angeles in each of their previous four meetings. By halftime, the Pistons had cut a 24-point deficit to 13.
Reaves helped slow that rally late in the second quarter.
With Detroit within 15, Matisse Thybulle found him for a 25-foot 3-pointer that pushed the lead to 60-42. The Pistons kept coming after the break, scoring 33 points in the third to make it 88-81 heading into the fourth.
Detroit outscored Los Angeles in each of the final three quarters. But the Lakers put up 33 points of their own in the fourth, enough to protect what remained of their early lead and send the Pistons to 6-3.
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Los Angeles visits Atlanta on Monday with a chance to win its sixth straight.
Through the first five games of that run, Doncic and Reaves have been the best duo in the NBA, combining for five 40-point performances. Sunday Reaves was asked to carry the load without his running mate and he did not disappoint.
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