Talk about blood, sweat and tears.
AJ Dybantsa collided with Cade Cunningham during the Washington Wizards‘ game against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday, Nov. 12 and was bloodied on the play.
Dybantsa didn’t miss any action and even sent the game into its second overtime, but Cunningham ended up being the star of the game. The Pistons guard scored a career-high 52 points at Capital One Arena to dismantle the Wizards 144-140 in double overtime. He added 11 assists, five rebounds, a steal and a block. He did not commit a turnover.
According to the league, he is the first player ever to notch at least 50 points and 10 assists in a game without turning the ball over.
Advertisement
The 2021 No. 1 overall pick passed his previous career high when he scored his 47th point in the first overtime with a 3-point bucket that tied the game at 130.
Wizards, AJ Dybantsa also have monster night in loss
As for the collision, with 26 seconds left in regulation and the Wizards up 118-117, Cunningham was dribbling the ball and attempted to twirl and switch directions. The Wizards rookie and 2026 No. 1 overall pick was guarding him and, when Cunningham spun back around, his jaw smacked into the side of Dybantsa’s face.
Dybantsa fell backwards onto the court and grabbed his mouth as he laid on his back. Blood started dripping from his mouth. A trainer tended to him as he continued lying on the hardwood.
Advertisement
He then got up and returned to action.
The game went into overtime with the score tied at 121 at the end of the fourth quarter. Dybantsa sent the game to a second overtime, seemingly no worse for wear. He took a pass from Trae Young, dribbled and took a jump shot at the charity stripe to tie the game at 132 with 0.1 second left.
The rookie finished with five points, eight rebounds and four assists for the Wizards.
Washington was led by Young, who had 37 points and 14 assists. Anthony Davis notched a double-double of his own with 30 points and 15 boards. Alex Sarr added 30 points and nine rebounds.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cade Cunningham has historic night as Pistons outlast Wizards in bloody battle
Leave a Reply