Golden State 99, Detroit Pistons 91: Warriors win first road victory

AUBURN HILLS -- The Detroit Pistons couldn't contain Golden State's one-two punch, Monta Ellis and David Lee, and lost 99-91 to the Warriors Sunday night.
Lee proved too strong for Jonas Jerebko and too quick for Ben Wallace, his two principal defenders, in dropping 24 points on the Pistons.
Ellis, the NBA's sixth-leading scorer, had 22 points.
The game got away from the Pistons when Greg Monroe was given a rest a minute before the first mandatory timeout of the fourth quarter, and Austin Daye and Jerebko became the offensive centerpieces.
Daye missed a pair of 3-pointers, Jerebko's turnover led to a fast break that pushed the lead to double-digits, and the Warriors didn't stop until a 12-0 run pushed the lead to 88-73.


The Warriors came in having lost seven of eight, including a 112-100 defeat at Charlotte on Saturday. First-year coach Mark Jackson said before Sunday’s game he expected his group to play like “a team that’s upset.” Although the Warriors had a hard time stopping Monroe inside, they prevented any of the other Detroit players from becoming too comfortable on offense.


The Pistons snapped a six-game losing streak Friday night with a victory at Charlotte, but Lee hurt them inside early, then Ellis and Dorell Wright contributed some scoring of their own in the second half.


Lee’s streak of double-doubles ended at six games. He fouled out with 4:40 remaining with only six rebounds. Lee went 10 of 12 from the field, and the Warriors shot 52 percent.


Detroit shot 42 percent.


The Warriors were still without guard Stephen Curry, who has a sprained right ankle. Both teams seemed intent on going inside early. Monroe and Lee each scored 17 points in the first half.


Detroit coach Lawrence Frank was on his feet for much of the half, shouting detailed instructions to his team at the defensive end.


Wright scored on a breakaway in the third, capping an eight-point run and giving Golden State a 56-54 lead. It was 74-69 after Ellis made a shot from near the top of the key at the buzzer to end the quarter.


Detroit was still within striking distance at 78-73 in the fourth, but the Warriors scored 10 straight points. Backup guard Nate Robinson had six points during the run and finished with 10.


The Warriors had six players in double figures. Brandon Rush scored 12 points and Wright contributed 11.