Cavs Take Game 5 in Overtime, 117-113

*** Winning your first playoff game on the road is one thing. Ripping an opponent’s heart out on their home floor is another. 

The Cavaliers did the latter on Wednesday night in Motown – erasing a nine-point lead in the final three minutes of regulation and finishing the job in overtime, taking a 3-2 edge in their Eastern Conference Semifinal series with a thrilling 117-113 victory at Little Caesars Arena.

Tobias Harris' three-pointer put the Pistons ahead, 103-94, with exactly three minutes to play, and those would be the last points Detroit would score in the fourth quarter. Donovan Mitchell stopped the bleeding with a floater on Cleveland’s next possession – and Evan Mobley took over from there, scoring on a dunk, blocking a Paul Reed offering on the other end, then splashing home a three-pointer to get the Cavs to within a deuce and drilling two free throws with 45 seconds remaining to tie the score. 

The Cavaliers actually had a chance to win it in regulation, but Ausar Thomson blocked Mitchell’s short jumper with under a second to play. 

Cleveland came out ready to rumble in overtime, opening the extra session on a 9-2 run and holding off the Pistons from there as they head home looking to ice the series on Friday night at Rocket Arena. 

Detroit took the lead early in the second quarter and held Cleveland off in the third. The Cavs closed the period off on an 8-2 run and took a four-point edge into the fourth. But the Pistons used an 11-2 run to take a nine-point advantage. That’s as good as it would get for the home squad. 

“Man, we just made big plays,” said Coach Kenny Atkinson. “We’re down eight, down nine. I think that stretch right there says a lot about our progress - mental performance progress and mental toughness progress. We kept at it. Evan Mobley, huge plays. Max Strus, huge plays. And then, regulation didn’t end great, but these guys never got down. Great demeanor; great leadership from Donovan, Evan and James.”

James Harden led the Cavaliers with 30 points, going 8-of-21 from the floor and 11-for-14 from the stripe, adding eight boards, six assists and three blocked shots in the win. 

Harden talked postgame on the key to turning it around after a sluggish start to the series. 

“Finding when to be aggressive, when to be a playmaker, and things like that,” said the 11-time All-Star. “Then offensively, finding what works for us and for me to be successful, to get guys shots and open looks. So, it all comes together, and I think we’re building in the right direction. And, throughout that process, there’s going to be sometimes where we don’t look as great, but I think overall we have the right mindset of wanting to help each other get better. And I think we’re finding that as of lately.”

Coming off his 43-point masterpiece in Game 4, Donovan Mitchell followed up with 21 points on Wednesday night – scoring seven of those in overtime – going 7-of-18 from the floor on the night. 

Evan Mobley added 19 points on 6-for-13 shooting, including 2-of-3 from long-range, adding eight boards, a team-high eight assists, a steal and three swats of his own – giving him 15 blocks in the series. 

Jarrett Allen posted his second double-double of the playoffs with 16 points and a game-high 10 boards, adding a steal and a pair of blocked shots, his 23^rd and 24^th of the postseason. 

Max Strus was outstanding in a reserve role once again, finishing with 20 points to lead all reserves – going 6-of-8 from beyond the arc to go with eight rebounds, a steal and blocked shot in 36 action-packed minutes off the bench. 

“Resiliency, grit, it took everything we had,” said Strus. “Just possessions and getting stops defensively was a huge factor to that – just getting stops and getting rebounds and then finding ways to score offensively. It wasn’t our best night offensively, but I think that’s what speaks volumes to getting this win was we found a way.”

Wednesday’s matchup wasn’t a thing of beauty. Cleveland turned the ball over 17 times and Detroit finished with 15 miscues. But the Cavaliers were the more resilient team in Game 5. The Pistons took 15 more shots from the floor, but saw the Cavs take 18 more free throws. 

Cade Cunningham nearly willed his team to the win, leading all scorers with 39 points on 13-for-27 shooting, including 6-of-10 from deep and 7-of-8 from the stripe, adding seven boards, a game-high nine assists and pair of steals. 

Daniss Jenkins stepped into the starting lineup to chip with 19 points and Tobias Harris added 13 points in the loss. 

*** After dropping the first two games of the series, the Cavaliers have won each of the last three, pushing the Pistons to the brink with Game 6 set for Friday night at Rocket Arena. If Detroit can stave off elimination, these two Central Division rivals will lock horns here in the Motor City on Sunday.