James Harden scored 30 points and Donovan Mitchell added 21, including seven in overtime, as the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers rallied to beat the Detroit Pistons 117-113 on Wednesday to take a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semi-finals.
The result leaves Detroit, the No 1 seeds in the East, just one defeat from elimination.
Max Strus had 20 points and eight rebounds and Evan Mobley added 19 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for the Cavaliers, who had lost all five of their previous road playoff games this spring. Harden had eight rebounds and six assists, while Jarrett Allen contributed 16 points and 10 boards.
“You hope it propels us. You hope it galvanizes us. You hope we carry it forward,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. “That was a battle-tested win against a heck of a team, on the road. I think you build mental toughness with games like this.”
Cade Cunningham finished with 39 points, nine rebounds and seven assists and Daniss Jenkins added 19 points for the Pistons, who will face elimination for the fourth time this postseason.
“It’s a tough loss,” Cunningham said. “Obviously wanted to protect our own court. We failed to do that. Being up 3-2 is an advantage for them. First to four wins, though.
“We’ve had our back against the wall before. At the end of the day, if we can’t win a game on the road, how far are we really gonna get in the playoffs? How far we gonna get in this league? So gotta go win the game on the road. That’s what we’re gonna go.“
Game 6 of the best-of-seven series is Friday night in Cleveland. A win by the Cavaliers sends Cleveland to the Eastern Conference finals against the Knicks. A Detroit win sets up a Game 7 on the Pistons’ home floor Sunday.
“[Mitchell] struggled a little bit offensively, but that’s why he has a team and guys that pick him up,” Harden said. “Max [Strus] came through, made some big shots. Dennis [Schroder] came in, played extremely well. So this is a team effort. Tonight was one of those nights where we found something, and I was aggressive.“
Cleveland took control early in overtime, scoring nine of the first 11 points to build a 112-105 lead.
Cunningham’s jumper brought Detroit within 113-111 with 25.9 seconds remaining, but the Cavaliers closed it out at the free-throw line. Harden and Mobley combined to hit four of six foul shots in the final seconds.
“They started doubling and getting the ball out of Cade’s hands. We’ll find ways to fix it. We’ll be better,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said.
Cleveland pushed their lead to four early in the fourth quarter, but Detroit responded with a 15-2 run to take a 100-91 advantage with just under four minutes left. Cleveland missed their first nine shots of the period before rallying late, eventually pulling even at 103-103 on Mobley’s two free throws with 45.2 seconds to play. The Cavaliers had a chance to win, but were unable to get a shot off on their final possession before time expired.
“It’s about exploiting whatever they’re doing that’s giving us advantages. I just haven’t done a good enough job of drawing the two and then getting the ball to guys cleanly,” Cunningham said.