PHILADELPHIA — Guard Ish Smith had 15 points and eight assists as the Philadelphia 76ers beat the slumping Detroit Pistons 94-83 on Wednesday night.
Guard Jason Richardson added 14 points for the Sixers (16-52), who won for just the third time in 10 games but posted their third victory in four meetings with Detroit this season.
Philadelphia center Nerlens Noel contributed 11 points, four rebounds and three blocks but left the game with 4:27 left in the third quarter with a bruised right foot and did not return.
Guard Kentavious Cadlwell-Pope had 20 points to pace Detroit (24-44), which shot just 33 percent from the field while losing for the 11th time in 12 games.
Guard Reggie Jackson had 11 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for his first career triple-double and center Andre Drummond chipped in nine points and 14 rebounds for the Pistons, who were without forward Greg Monroe (strained right knee) for the second straight game.
Philadelphia led the last 36:47, but its cushion was just 68-65 after three quarters and 78-72 after Pistons guard Spencer Dinwiddie nailed a 3-pointer with 6:58 left in the game.
Philadelphia reeled off the nine points, including 3-pointers by guard Isaiah Canaan and Richardson, to go up 87-72 with 2:40 remaining.
Smith, making just his second start this season and the 10th of his five-year career, went 6 of 12 from the floor. He also had three steals.
Richardson, just 6 of 37 from the floor (and 0 of 16 from 3-point range) in his previous four games, went 4 of 7 from the floor, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc.
Detroit built a 19-15 lead late in the first quarter, but the Sixers outscored the Pistons 28-12 during the next 11 minutes to go in front 43-31 with 3:53 left in the second quarter. Reserve forward Thomas Robinson generated 10 points in that surge and Richardson hit his first 3-pointer in 17 attempts spanning the last five games.
Philadelphia’s advantage was 49-39 at halftime, at which point Noel and Robinson had 10 points each.
Jackson scored nine points in the first half to lead Detroit, which shot just 33.3 percent from the field and committed 13 turnovers in the first 24 minutes.
The Sixers extended their lead to 67-54 on Smith’s basket with 3:27 left in the third quarter, but the Pistons scored 11 of the last 12 points in the quarter, four of those by Caldwell-Pope, to narrow the gap to 68-65.
NOTES: The Sixers hosted the family of the late Robert Wilson III, a Philadelphia police officer gunned down earlier this month during a robbery at a game store. Wilson had stopped to buy a video game for the older of his two sons, Quahmier, in part because he was about to celebrate his 10th birthday and also because he excels in school. Before Wednesday’s game, G Jason Richardson took Quahmier on a tour of the team’s locker room and introduced him to several players as well as coach Brett Brown. Richardson also gave him a jersey, and Quahmier was presented a pair of C Nerlens Noel’s sneakers as well. “We really respect what his dad did,” Richardson said. “His dad is a hero and always will be a hero for what he’s done.” Quahmier’s 1-year-old brother, Robert IV, was also on hand, as were other family members. … Video has circulated that appeared to show Detroit coach Stan Van Gundy brushing off Memphis coach Dave Joerger after the Pistons beat the Grizzlies on Tuesday night. Van Gundy said that was not the case, that it was “a pleasant exchange” and they wished each other well. He also said he plans to contact Joerger to make sure he “didn’t take anything the wrong way.”