Pistons Take 2-0 Edge as Matchup Heads to Rocket Arena

*** For the second straight game in their Semifinal series, the Cavaliers trailed through almost the entire first half and had to play catch-up after intermission. They finally tracked down the Pistons early in the fourth quarter, but Detroit outscored Cleveland, 28-16, from there to seal the 107-97 win – taking a 2-0 edge as the Second Round matchup heads back to Rocket Arena for the next two. 

The Cavs scored the first points of the game, but once again trailed by double-digits before the end of the first quarter and by two touchdowns late in the first half. Cleveland closed the gap after intermission and got to within a point late in the third period. 

The Wine & Gold scored the first six points of the fourth quarter and took a two-point edge on Evan Mobley’s dunk with 10:52 to play – their first lead since the game’s opening moments. But Tobias Harris tied the game on Detroit’s next possession, and the Pistons didn’t trail the rest of the way. 

“Not a great start for that starting group,” lamented Coach Kenny Atkinson. “We know the deal here. I have to look at everything. Is there a jolt from somewhere? We just have to look at everything. We tried to change up our coverages, tried to be a little bit more aggressive to get our mojo going. I don’t know what it is with the start of games. They came out super aggressive of course, but it’s the Playoffs.”

The Cavs – who still haven’t won on the road during the postseason – didn’t struggle with turnovers as they had in Game 1, but once again struggled from long-range, going 7-for-32 on the night, including 0-for-11 in the fourth quarter. 

Donovan Mitchell led Cleveland’s second-half push, scoring 11 of his game-high 31 points in the third quarter. Notching his third 30-point performance of the postseason, the seven-time All-Star went 11-for-24 from the floor, including 2-of-9 from deep and 7-of-9 from the stripe, adding six boards, three assists and a pair of steals. 

Mitchell’s backcourt mate didn’t fare nearly as well. James Harden struggled from the floor all night in Game 2, going 3-for-13 and missing all four three-pointers. The 17-year veteran, who attempted just two shots after intermission, added six boards, three assists and a steal, but also committed four miscues in the loss. 

“Honestly, he just needs to just continue to be in attack mode,” said Mitchell. “He’s James Harden. We’re not sitting here worried; he’s going to figure this out and we have to do a better job around him as well. Whether it’s spacing or putting him in different positions. And we’ll have that conversation. We’ve been having that conversation and at the end of the day we’re going to figure it out.”

Jarrett Allen, who tallied just two points and three boards in the series opener on Tuesday, did most of his damage after the break – scoring 15 of his 22 points in the second stanza. Overall, Allen went 7-for-9 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the stripe, grabbing a team-high seven rebounds to go with three assists, a steal and a blocked shot. 

“Playoff basketball is a different type of basketball,” said Allen. “Kudos to (Detroit), they play excellent defense. Sometimes I think we overthink things. I think we overthink our offense when we’ve had some of the best offense towards the end of the game for the past 82 games and we just start to speed ourselves up and, honestly, we haven’t been hitting shots at all this Playoffs, as well.”

Cleveland’s other two starters – Dean Wade and Evan Mobley – combined for just 17 points. Wade went 3-of-6 from the floor, including 2-of-4 from long-range, adding five boards. Mobley went 4-of-10 from the floor and grabbed only a single rebound, but did manage to lead both squads with three rejections. 

Detroit’s bench outscored the Cavs reserves, 26-17, in Thursday’s defeat. Jaylon Tyson led Cleveland’s reserves with seven points and five boards, but the remaining subs combined to go just 3-for-12 from the floor. 

On the night, the Wine & Gold shot 42 percent from the floor, including 22 percent from long-range. After making just 16 trips to the line in Game 1, the Cavs bounced back to go 22-for-27 from the stripe in Game 2. Cleveland outscored Detroit in the paint, 52-42, and on second-chance opportunities, 22-16. But Detroit – which shot an even 5-0 percent from beyond the arc – got the best of the boards, 42-36, led by Jalen Duren – who paced both teams with 10 rebounds. 

Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 25 points and both teams with 10 assists, going 7-for-14 from the floor, including 3-of-6 from deep and 8-for-8 from the stripe. The All-Star guard committed five turnovers, but also blocked a pair of shots, grabbed four boards and finished with a +/- number of +13 in 42 minutes of work. 

Reserve Daniss Jenkins, who finished with 12 points and seven rebounds in Game 1, was good again on Thursday night – leading all reserves with 14 points and six boards in 26 minutes off the bench. 

*** After dropping the first two games in Motown, the Eastern Conference Semis resume at Rocket Arena over the weekend. On Saturday afternoon, the Cavs and Pistons square off for Game 3, with Game 4 slated for Monday night. If necessary, the Wine and Gold return to Detroit for Game 5 on Wednesday night and if the series progresses, these two square off for Game 6 next Friday night in Cleveland. If the Second Round goes the distance, Game 7 goes down next Sunday at Little Caesars Arena.