Cavs drop to Pistons in Game 1, 111-101

*** Whether it was the fatigue of going toe-to-toe with the Raptors for seven contentious games or a tough Pistons’ defense that led the NBA in steals, the turnover-prone Cavaliers never got into a groove on Tuesday night in Detroit and dropped a 111-101 decision in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semis. 

Cleveland scored the first five points of the game, but never led after that – with Detroit answering with a 30-9 run to put themselves in control for most of the remainder of Tuesday’s game. The Cavs rallied back from 11 points down in the fourth quarter to tie the affair at 93-apiece with 5:28 to play. But the Pistons answered with a 12-3 surge from there that put the contest essentially out of reach. 

Neither the Cavaliers nor the Pistons – coming off a seven-game battle of their own against Orlando – were particularly sharp on Tuesday night. But it was Cleveland’s 20 turnovers, and Detroit scoring 31 points off those miscues, that spelled the Wine & Gold’s demise. 

The top-seeded Pistons led by 16 points after one quarter and by double-digits through most of the first half. Detroit was still in control after intermission, but Cleveland used a 10-2 run – capped by Max Strus’ fourth three-pointer – to get to within three late in the third period. 

The Cavs closed the gap midway through the fourth, but Jalen Duren scored on three straight dunks to put the Pistons back in control for the remainder. 

“I thought the second half was better,” said Coach Kenny Atkinson. “The first half was – it wasn’t just their bigs. I thought just overall, they were more forceful, (had) more energy. I thought, again, we were much better in the second half. But (the) energy scale of one to ten, they were a nine-and-a-half, and we were probably at a seven. It’s tough to win on the road with that kind of disparity.”

Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 23 points on 9-for-19 shooting, including 4-of-10 from long-range, adding four boards, two assists and a steal. 

“I think it’s attention to detail,” said Mitchell. “You know, we have to be sharp. We just weren’t. With that being said, there are so many things we can control. I think it’s just a matter of being sharp. There was some carryover, in that regard, from last series, but we’ll clean that up and move forward.”

James Harden scored 13 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, going 4-of-7 from the floor in the period and 6-of-15 overall. The 11-time All-Star was 9-for-9 from the stripe, adding eight boards, a team-high seven assists and a pair of blocks. On the negative side of the ledger, Harden committed seven miscues in the loss. 

“You look at my turnovers, and a lot of them are just on me and nothing [Detroit] did,” said Harden. “(Those turnovers) led to (transition points). It was way too many. If I had to put my print on one thing in the game, that’s the game right there.”

Max Strus followed up his excellent performance in Sunday’s Game 7 win over Toronto with another gem on Tuesday – chipping in with 19 points, going 7-for-13 from the floor, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, to go with five boards, a pair of assists and a steal in 27 minutes of work off the bench. 

Evan Mobley was the only other Cavalier in double-figures with 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting, leading Cleveland with nine boards to go with five assists and a pair of blocked shots. 

Overall, the Cavs shot 45 percent from the floor and went 15-of-16 from the stripe. Detroit went 45 percent from the field, but attempted 35 free throws, connecting on 27. The Pistons, who finished the NBA regular season with 60 more steals than the next closest team, picked Cleveland off 12 times on the night. 

Cade Cunningham led six Pistons in double-figures with 23 points, but went just 6-for-19 from the floor, adding a team-best seven assists. Tobias Harris added 20 points and Jalen Duren doubled-up with 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Daniss Jenkins led Detroit’s second unit with 12 points and both teams with four steals. 

*** These two Central Division rivals square off again on Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena and will battle every other day until one squad reaches the Conference Finals. The series returns to Cleveland on Saturday afternoon, with Game 4 slated for Monday night at Rocket Arena. The series rotates between venues for the final three games, if necessary.