The Detroit Pistons beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 107-97 on Thursday night to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinals series, the report says. Cade Cunningham finished with 25 points and 10 assists and Tobias Harris added 21 points as Detroit pulled away late, per the report.
Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland with 31 points and Jarrett Allen had 22 points and seven rebounds, the report says. James Harden was limited to 10 points, missing 10 of 13 shots and committing four turnovers, including one with 33 seconds left when the Cavs trailed by six, the report says.
The Cavs’ Max Strus scored only three points after totaling 19 in the series opener, and Cleveland went 0-for-11 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter with Strus accounting for four of the misses, the report says. Detroit’s Duncan Robinson made five of nine 3-pointers for 17 points, and Daniss Jenkins came off the bench to score 14 points, his third straight game in double figures, per the report.
Cleveland made the first shot of the game and did not lead again until an Evan Mobley dunk put the visitors ahead 81-79 early in the fourth quarter, the report says. Detroit led by 11 in the first quarter and by 14 in the second, but the Pistons did not pull away until the final minutes of the game, according to the report.
The Cavs opened the fourth with a 6-0 run before Detroit answered with plays on both ends; Robinson hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 9:40 left and Cunningham’s 3 with 2:12 remaining put the Pistons up by nine, sealing the victory, the report says. The Pistons also won Game 1 by 10, with Cunningham and Mitchell each scoring 23 points in that contest, per the report.
Game 3 is Saturday in Cleveland, where the Cavs were 4-0 in the first round against the Toronto Raptors, the report says. The top-seeded Pistons have won five straight games since the Orlando Magic put them on the brink of elimination in the first round, and Cavs reserve guard Sam Merrill sat out Game 2 with a hamstring injury after being hurt in the series opener, the report adds.
