DETROIT -- Near the end of a lengthy road trip, the Denver Nuggets delivered one of their strongest defensive performances of the season.

Ranked second to last in the NBA in defensive field-goal percentage, the Nuggets held the slumping Detroit Pistons to 35.4 percent shooting and forced 20 turnovers in a 103-84 victory on Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena.

The Nuggets (15-12) held just two other opponents below 40 percent shooting prior to Tuesday and also won those games. They are 2-3 on a six-game road trip that concludes Wednesday in Boston. Denver limited the Orlando Magic to 89 points in a 14-point victory earlier in the trip.

"When we defend like that, we're a good team," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "We saw that defense in Orlando and then we saw it again tonight. I hope it comes to Boston with us. We did it for 48 minutes, which was great to see."

Second-year guard Jamal Murray fired in 28 points to lead the Nuggets' offensive attack. He scored 19 after halftime.

"Early in the game, I was just trying to call a couple plays to get him going, get him looks," Malone said. "Once Jamal sees the ball go through the net early on, he starts shooting into a very big basket as the game goes along."

Reserve forward Trey Lyles tossed in 20 points while making all seven of his field-goal attempts. Wilson Chandler scored 18 points, while Mason Plumlee supplied 10 points and a season-high 13 rebounds for the Nuggets, who never trailed. Gary Harris added eight points, six rebounds, nine assists and four steals to the winning cause.

Plumlee outplayed counterpart Andre Drummond, the league's leading rebounder. Drummond scored just five points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

"Start to finish, we were solid," Plumlee said. "I would say this was our best job staying in coverages and doing what we said we were going to do in the game plan with the exception of (Detroit's Langston) Galloway coming off those screens. We really guarded the way we wanted to."

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic missed his sixth consecutive game due to a left ankle sprain.

A pair of reserves led the Pistons with season highs in points. Galloway had 18 and Boban Marjanovic contributed 14 points for the Pistons (14-13), who have lost seven straight. The losing streak is Detroit's longest since it dropped 10 straight during February and March 2015.

Pistons forward Tobias Harris was held to no field goals on seven attempts and two points, the first time all season he failed to reach double digits. Detroit's starters shot a combined 10-for-36 from the field, scored just 31 points and were responsible for 16 turnovers.

"It was extremely bad basketball, mindless basketball," Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. "Forcing plays, no energy, just as a unit, no chemistry, no energy. They just took us out of everything."

The Nuggets shot 50.6 percent (40-for-79) from the field, while the Pistons' turnover total tied a season high.

"Our minds were not in it tonight," Van Gundy said. "Everybody's got their dilemmas, whatever they are. Some guys hanging their heads. I'm not singling out every individual, but as a group we have guys feeling sorry for ourselves, and that's not going to cut it."

Denver outscored Detroit 31-20 in the third quarter for an 80-60 lead. Murray scored 13 points during the period, including seven in the first 1:30.

"From the start, we locked down defensively, got up into them and disrupted what they were trying to do," said Lyles, who was coming off a season-best 25 point outing in Indiana. "The third quarter we really exploded, and offensively, we started to click, too, and started making a lot of shots."

The Pistons never got closer than 15 the remainder of the game.

NOTES: Nuggets C Nikola Jokic, who hasn't played during the six-game road trip due to an ankle sprain, could return as early as Wednesday's game at Boston. "He's getting closer. He's definitely moving in the right direction," coach Michael Malone said. "The ankle is still very, very sore, but he's moving better. He's managing the pain, and whether he's available (Wednesday) night, we'll wait and see." ... Detroit swept last season's two-game series. The clubs meet again in Denver on March 15. ... Pistons C Andre Drummond has 247 double-doubles since the 2012-13 season, tops among Eastern Conference players. ... The Nuggets have already used 10 starting lineups.