Seems like Kenny Atkinson has waved the white flag, pulling the starters after the timeout. Bickerstaff does the same, sitting the starters but Reed hits a 3-pointer as the Pistons continue to pour it on. Time runs out and the Pistons have defeated the Cavs with a huge 21-point win, and we’ll see them again in Detroit on Sunday for another Game 7.
Jenkins pulls up and hits the jumper, then Mobley gets fouled and goes 1-for-2 from the line. Reed somehow makes space baseline and lays it in under the rim, but Harden answers with another 3-pointer. Thompson fouls out trying to move through a screen by Allen, as Allen goes 2-for-2 from the line.
Less than four minutes to go, as LeVert finds Jenkins for another 3! Pistons now take a 16-point lead as the Cavs take a quick timeout with 3:25 left in the fourth. Strus misses the 3, then Cunningham also misses the triple but Duren gets the rebound and lays it back in.
Cavs still missing shots as Jenkins hits another 3 and the Cavs call timeout again with 2:21 left.
Duren returns for the first time since the third quarter, as Mitchell tries to jam it but Cunningham meets him at the rim for a huge block! Duren spins on Mobley and lays it in, but Thompson picks up his fifth foul and heads to the bench.
Mobley gets the easy dunk inside, then Cunningham draws the foul and hits both free throws. Harden isos on Harris and drills the 3, but Duren gets the offensive rebound and lays it in again! The Cavs again get multiple rebounds as Cunningham fouls Harden, then Wade slips and Harris steals it for the easy dunk, as the Cavs call timeout with 6:07 left.
Robinson starts the fourth by hitting a 3, but Mobley answers in the corner with a 3-pointer of his own. Harden goes to the line again and makes both free throws, but Sasser answers with a stepback triple over Merrill. Mitchell drives and hits the floater, but Sasser again answers with a pull-up jumper. We’re going back-and-forth now as Mitchell hits a 3, and Bickerstaff calls timeout.
Out of the timeout, LeVert misses a contested 3 but the Pistons save the ball multiple times, leading to Reed getting the slowest and-one layup roll you’ll ever see. Reed makes the free throw, then Harden gets to the line and makes both free throws. Robinson and Merrill trade triples, then Merrill drives and hits the layup.
Reed is fouled and goes 1-for-2 from the line, as the Cavs get multiple offensive rebounds but can’t get a shot to go. On the other end, the Pistons only need one offensive rebound to find Robinson open for another 3! Mobley turns it over, then Reed drives and hits the layup, as Mobley responds by making space on Reed for the hook shot.
Reed gets open under the rim for an easy layup, then Sasser runs and hits the floater at the buzzer! Pistons take their largest lead of the night at 14 points, with one quarter remaining in Game 6.
Harden spins and hits a midrange jumper on LeVert, then we get more turnovers from both teams. Duren tweaks his ankle as Thompson misses a wide-open 3, but Thompson swats away Strus’ layup with both hands! Thompson continues his effort by drawing the offensive foul on Allen as Duren heads to the back
Harden draws the foul as the Cavs are in the bonus, hitting both free throws as Duren sits on the bench. Reed gets blocked by Allen, then Allen catches a block from LeVert and hooks it in as the Pistons call timeout with 5:24 left in the third.
Pistons start the third quarter hot. Cunningham starts by calmly draining a triple, then Harris makes a layup. Duren blocks a Harden floater, then Allen is fouled and goes 1-for-2 from the line. Jenkins hits a corner-3, then another Harden turnover leads to Mobley fouling Harris in transition. Harris makes both free throws as the Pistons open up on a 10-1 run.
Mobley draws the foul on Harris but splits the free throws, then Jenkins lays it in over Allen. Harden makes two free throws, then Duren misses the layup but Thompson flies in for the putback dunk! The Pistons take a 13-point lead, their largest tonight, as the Cavs need a timeout.
It was a rollercoaster of a first half, as the Pistons enter halftime with a slim lead over the Cavaliers in this pivotal Game 6.
It seems like the Pistons are having trouble finishing halves. After letting a nine-point lead slip away in the final moments of regulation in Game 5, the same problems came up in the first half of Game 6. Holding a 10-point lead with two minutes left, the Cavs answered with a 7-0 run thanks to turnovers and poor fouling.
Cade Cunningham leads all scorers with 16 points as he showed strong effort on both sides of the ball, but he’s again being careless with five turnovers, including back-to-back bad passes that started the Cavs late second-quarter run. Jalen Duren had the best half of this series with nine points and six rebounds despite going 1-for-4 from the free throw line.
For the Cavs, James Harden has seven points so far as he’s struggled with five turnovers as well. Donovan Mitchell leads Cleveland with 13 points in a game that’s as fast-paced as it’s been sloppy. Both teams combined for 24 total turnovers in the first half alone, as Detroit has 11 and Cleveland leads with 13.
Dennis Schröder puts the full-court pressure on Cunningham but is called for the foul as both teams are now in the bonus, then LeVert hits a pull-up jumper. Duren drives and hits the layup, but Dean Wade answers with a corner 3-pointer for his first points in about two games.
Duren is fouled and goes to the line to hit one of two free throws, then after forcing a turnover, Cunningham pulls up and nails the 3. Duren rises and blocks Mitchell’s floater, but the Pistons turn it over in transition and that leads to a Max Strus 3-pointer. Cunningham answers with another 3 to beat the shot clock as he’s up to 16 first-half points!
Allen is fed an easy dunk, then Mobley is fouled in transition and misses both free throws. The Cavs get the rebound and miss a 3, leading to Duren driving and hitting the left-handed layup. Thompson is called for his third foul, and Mobley makes both free throws this time.
Cunningham throws back-to-back turnovers, one leading to a Mitchell dunk and another leading to Harden getting fouled. Harden misses both free throws but Allen gets the rebound, leading to another Strus 3! That’s the last bucket of the first half as the Cavs go on a 7-0 run to end the second quarter.
Thompson gets fouled as he goes 1-for-2 at the line, then he runs in transition and hits the acrobatic layup. Merrill and Thompson get tied up as Thompson shoves Merrill down for a foul, and after review the foul is upgraded to a flagrant 1. Merrill makes both free throws, then the fouls start piling up for both teams.
Merrill hits a corner-3 after a miss by Jenkins as J.B. Bickerstaff calls a timeout with 6:36 left in the second quarter.
Paul Reed checks in to start the second quarter and gets to the rim for a layup. Robinson gets fouled by Sam Merrill on a 3-pointer, and that’s three fouls on Merrill already as Robinson goes 2-for-3 at the line. Reed hits a hook shot over Mobley, then Mobley is called for the offensive foul on Reed. Cunningham puts the moves on Merrill, dribbling and spinning for a turnaround jumper as the Pistons take a 10-point lead.
Robinson is called for back-to-back fouls in 10 seconds, as Mitchell makes both free throws. The Pistons get another offensive rebound, as Reed finds Cunningham for another 3 and it’s a 11-point lead and the Cavs need time.
Marcus Sasser checks in for the Pistons and banks in a layup, as the Cavs commit back-to-back turnovers for six total early in this game. Robinson hits a 3 off the screen, but Mobley bullies inside with an offensive rebound and slam, then LeVert answers with another 3. Cleveland turns it over again, then Duren is fouled on an inbounds lob attempt and misses both free throws.
Jenkins gets the rebound and gets fouled with 0.1 seconds left, as he makes both free throws and the Pistons end the first quarter with a two-point lead.
Mitchell makes both free throws out of the timeout, then Harden hits a jumper as the Cavs are on a 10-2 run. Duren ends it with another made shot, then the Pistons win a jumpball and that leads to a Caris LeVert 3. But the Cavs bigs answer again, as Allen lays it in then Mobley hits a 3-pointer. Mitchell hits a layup, then Mobley blocks Cunningham’s layup as the ball stays in Detroit’s possession and the Cavs call timeout.
Cavaliers win the tipoff as Donovan Mitchell is called for the offensive foul to start the game. James Harden’s floater is good for the first Cavs’ points, but the Pistons get multiple offensive rebounds, leading to a Cade Cunningham layup.
Evan Mobley hits a hook shot, then another offensive rebound from Detroit sets up Cunningham for a 3-pointer. Harden misses a 3 as Ausar Thompson leaks out for the and-one layup, making the free throw for a 8-4 early lead. Jarrett Allen tips in a miss from Mobley, then Thompson hits a free throw jumper.
Harden gets Jalen Duren in isolation and drains the 3-pointer, then Mitchell does the same on Tobias Harris for back-to-back threes. Duren drives and lays it in for the tie, then both teams trade turnovers as that leads to Mitchell being fouled by Duren and our first timeout.
While Duncan Robinson is available to play tonight, the Pistons stay with their Game 5 starters, featuring Daniss Jenkins in place of Robinson.
Preview
The Detroit Pistons find themselves on the brink of elimination again, going to Cleveland to face the Cavaliers in a must-win Game 6 on Friday night.
Detroit suffered through an epic collapse in Game 5 at home, losing to the Cavs in overtime. After building a 2-0 lead, three straight losses has the top seed in the Eastern Conference looking at an early playoff exit.
The Pistons will need to overcome problems that have surfaced throughout this playoff run, such as consistent scoring outside of Cade Cunningham’s production, if they want to force a Game 7 back in Detroit.
Although this team pulled off a 3-1 series comeback in the first round, the Cavs have proven they can make the right plays at the end of games. Also, the Pistons may still be without starter Duncan Robinson for Game 6, who is still dealing with a lower-back injury.
Follow along here for live updates from Detroit News contributor Kameron Goodwill.
Detroit Pistons collapsed down the stretch in 117-113 loss against Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 5.
Pistons collapsed down the stretch in OT loss against Cavaliers in Game 5 on Wednesday at LCA.
NBA Playoffs, second round: No. 1 Pistons vs. No. 4 Cavaliers
Cavaliers lead series, 3-2
Game 1: Pistons 111, Cavaliers 101
Game 2: Pistons 107, Cavaliers 97
Game 3: Cavaliers 116, Pistons 109
Game 4: Cavaliers 112, Pistons 103
Game 5: Cavaliers 117, Pistons 113 (OT)
Game 6: at Cleveland, Friday, 7
x-Game 7: at Detroit, Sunday, TBD (TBD)
x-If necessary
