Game Recap: Cavs at Pistons

Playing without their All-Star starting backcourt of Donovan Mitchell and James Harden – as well as Dean Wade and Keon Ellis – the Cavaliers jumped on the league-leading Pistons early and kept them at bay through most of the first three quarters. Detroit took a five-point edge early in the fourth, but Cleveland answered right back, and Evan Mobley’s dunk with 3:31 to play in regulation gave Cleveland a nine-point lead. 

But Detroit began to claw back from there, getting to within a single possession with just over a minute to play. Craig Porter Jr. and Evan Mobley each split their free throws in the final 11 seconds to open the door, and after Jaylon Tyson fouled Jenkins attempting a game-tying triple from halfcourt, the Pistons reserve sank all three free throws to send the game to overtime. 

The Pistons looked like they’d pull away from Cleveland in the extra session – taking an early six-point advantage – but the feisty Cavaliers again got within a point behind a Tyson triple and Dennis Schroder’s driving layup with 2:11 to play. 

Both teams committed key turnovers from there, but after Detroit won a coach’s challenge with 1:15 to play, Tobias Harris canned a turnaround jumper to give the Pistons a three- point edge with 21 seconds remaining. 

Cleveland had one more chance to tie the game, but Evan Mobley’s three-point attempt drew iron at the buzzer. 

Both teams were forced to play the overtime period without their top performers – Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen and Detroit’s Cade Cunningham – each of whom fouled out in the fourth quarter. 

Allen continued his incredible February run before picking up his sixth foul – finishing with a team-high 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting, adding nine boards, four assists and a block. But he was just one of three Cleveland big men who had a monster night in the Motor City. 

“I think we did fight with the guys that we had,” said Allen, who averaged 22.3 points and 11.5 rebounds in the month. “I think down the stretch, just the mistakes didn’t lead us to where we wanted to. When we get the guys that are our premier players, then things will be different.”

After being on a minutes-restriction following his return from a calf injury, Mobley looked like his old self again, adding 23 points, a team-best 12 rebounds and game-high four blocks. Mobley was one of three Cavaliers – along with Jaylon Tyson and Sam Merrill – to drill four triples in Friday’s nailbiter, going 4-of-8 from long-range. 

“(Evan)’s starting to catch a groove, I can see it,” praised Coach Kenny Atkinson. “I told him this morning at shootaround, I feel (he’s) just more energetic. He’s got more confidence. Just seems like when he comes back from injury, it always takes him a little bit to get going.”

Thomas Bryant rounded out the troika – finishing with 13 points, eight boards and a block in 16 action-packed minutes of work off the bench. 

Merrill chipped in with 20 points of his own, going 6-of-14 from the floor, including 4-of-10 from deep, adding three assists and a pair of steals. Tyson finished with 15 points, going 4-of-7 from long-range, adding four boards and two steals. 

Dennis Schroder rounded out the Cavaliers in double-figures, adding 12 points and nine assists in his second straight start. 

Craig Porter Jr. led both teams with 12 assists, adding a team-high three steals and a blocked shot in 35 minutes of work off the bench. 

Overall, both teams shot 46 percent from the floor, although Cleveland held the Pistons to just 23 percent from beyond the arc. But the Pistons outrebounded the Cavs, 56-41, piled up 68 points in the paint and forced 18 turnovers. 

Detroit’s Jalen Duren led both teams with 33 points and 16 boards, and Cade Cunningham added 25 points and 10 rebounds of his own. Tobias Harris had six of the Pistons’ 14 steals on the night. 

*** The Cavs close out their three-game junket on Sunday afternoon in Brooklyn, taking on the Nets to tip off the month of March. On Tuesday night back at Rocket Arena, it’s round 2 between Friday night’s combatants as the Pistons make their final visit to Cleveland this season. From there, the Wine and Gold get a well-earned four-day break before a huge home Eastern Conference back-to-back – welcoming the Celtics to town next Sunday followed by a visit from the Sixers the following night.

***The Wine and Gold have the day off on Saturday before wrapping up their three-game roadie. After Friday night’s frenetic battle royale in Motown, they earned it.

In what proved to be the wildest game of the season, the shorthanded Cavaliers battled for four quarters and an extra session before eventually dropping the 122-119 decision in an absolute thriller at Little Caesar’s Arena. 

Friday night’s contest had a little bit of everything. Heroic performances. Furious comebacks. Disqualifications. Fan ejections. And a prolonged third-quarter delay when a power surge caused the horn to blare for 13 minutes straight.  

When the smoke cleared – and after a crazy finish to regulation that featured Detroit overcoming a nine-point deficit with less than three minutes to play, capping their comeback on three made free throws by Daniss Jenkins to tie the game with 4.7 seconds remaining – the Cavaliers finally ran out of gas in overtime.