DENVER — The air was rare, and so was the Detroit Pistons escape from a late scare to kick off their three-game Western Conference road trip with a victory.

Piston-killer Jamal Murray missed two of three free throws with 0.7 seconds remaining as the Pistons squeaked by the Denver Nuggets, 109-107, at Ball Arena. They were led by Cade Cunningham (22 points, 11 assists) and Tobias Harris (22 points, eight rebounds), who hit the winning free throws late in the fourth quarter.

The Pistons led by 18 points in the second quarter, but a Nuggets run late in the fourth cut it to one, 105-104, with under a minute to go. Harris hit a clutch jumper from midrange to extend the lead to three, but Javonte Green fouled Jamal Murray on a 3-point attempt with 3.5 seconds left.

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With a chance to tie the game, Murray missed the first free throw but made the next two to make it a one-point game again. Harris went to the line with 2 seconds left and made both to push the lead back to three, 109-106. But with 0.7 seconds left, Green fouled Murray on another 3-point attempt.

This time, Murray made the first but missed the second, icing the win for the Pistons. He intentionally missed the third free throw and the Nuggets couldn’t corral the rebound. They did a good job defensively on Murray, who finished with 24 points and 10 assists but shot 7-for-18.

The Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic (left knee bone bruise), Aaron Gordon (right hamstring strain), Cameron Johnson (right knee bone bruise) and Christian Braun (left ankle sprain). The Pistons were without Caris LeVert (illness) for the third game in a row.

The victory boosted the Pistons to 34-11 and extended their lead as the top seed in the Eastern Conference to 5½ games over the Boston Celtics, and their lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Central Division to 7½ games. Next up, the Pistons head to Phoenix to take on the Suns on Thursday (9 p.m., FanDuel Sports Network Detroit) before wrapping up the trip the following night against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco.

Pistons withstand late run from Nuggets, Murray

The Pistons got off to a terrific defensive start, holding the Nuggets to 31.6% shooting in the first quarter and closing it with a 13-point lead, 31-18. They took the lead for good with a layup from Cunningham a minute into the first quarter, after Denver opened the game with a pair of free throws from Jamal Murray. 

But it got close late in the fourth when a 3-point play from Murray cut their lead to four, 99-95, with 3:03 to play. Murray followed with a layup to cut it to two, but a stepback midrange jumper from Cunningham and layup by Harris extended back to six, 103-97, at the 1:33 mark.

Murray, Denver’s star guard who had averaged better than 30 points against the Pistons in three previous games, got going late in the fourth. A turnaround jumper over Green cut it back to four, and then ex-Piston Tim Hardaway Jr. knocked down a 3-pointer to cut it to one, 103-102, with 56.4 seconds on the clock.

But Murray missed the most important shots of the night when he clanked his first of three free throws at the 3.5 second mark, and then his second free throw attempt with 0.7 seconds left, costing the Nuggets a chance to send the game into overtime.

Pistons struggle from 3 again

The Pistons led the Nuggets for almost the entirety of the night while enduring one of their worst performances from behind-the-arc. They were 2-for-21 from 3 midway through the third quarter, before they knocked down four of their final five attempts of the period. 

MILWAUKEE – Changes to the Milwaukee Police Department’s pursuit policy will take effect Feb. 6, tightening the circumstances under which officers may chase reckless drivers.

What we know:

Under the updated policy, speed alone can no longer be the sole reason for a pursuit. Officers must identify at least one additional factor, such as a collision with another vehicle, forcing other drivers to take evasive action to avoid a crash, or failing to slow or stop at a controlled intersection.

The policy change follows a deadly year for police chases in Milwaukee. Six pursuit-related crashes resulted in the deaths of nine people in 2025, according to department data. 

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However, some community members and officials question whether the changes will prevent future tragedies.

Local perspective:

It was June 8, 2024, when Tiffany Stark said her daughter’s father, Anthony Higgins, was critically injured after a vehicle fleeing police slammed into him. Higgins later died from his injuries.

“I think about all the people that died, but we also needed to think about the people that have survived,” said Tiffany Stark.

Stark said Higgins lived for 16 months with severe injuries before his death.

“His last 16 months of life was no life. It was no quality of life so I think,” said Stark.  “A spinal cord injury paralyzed him from the neck out.”

Higgins’ death was one of several fatalities linked to police chases in 2025, a key reason MPD said it is revising its pursuit policy.

“My captains have talked to the community, I’ve talked to the community,” said MPD Chief Norman.

Big picture view:

MPD presented the policy change last week during a Fire and Police Commission meeting. Norman said officers must weigh the risk a pursuit poses to the public.

“I do understand the responsibility of what a 4,000 pound vehicle is to our community,” said Norman.

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The proposal drew pushback from some commissioners, who questioned whether the policy would have altered outcomes in past cases.

“When I was reading the policy I was saying to myself – would any of the fatalities of this year not happened under this policy? And I don’t think the answer is yes,” said Commissioner Bree Spencer.

MPD data shows that in addition to the fatal crashes, 233 of 970 police pursuits in 2025 ended in crashes.

As for the new policy, Stark said she remains unconvinced it will save lives.

“I don’t feel the changes are gonna save any lives,” said Stark.