DETROIT – Teams that win Game 5 in a best-of-seven NBA playoff series tied 2-2 have gone on to win the series 196-44 all-time, a trend that had favored the Detroit Pistons entering Wednesday night.
But Detroit could not capitalize on that advantage, falling 117-113 to the Cleveland Cavaliers at home and seeing its five-game home winning streak snapped at Little Caesars Arena.
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The Pistons led by as many as 15 points in the first half and carried a nine-point advantage with fewer than three minutes remaining in regulation before Cleveland closed on a 13-0 run to force overtime and seize a 3-2 series lead.
Home teams in Game 5 of a tied series have gone on to win the series 73.3% of the time, but Detroit failed to take control of the matchup and now faces elimination pressure heading into Game 6 in Cleveland, where the Pistons must win to force a Game 7 on Sunday.
Turnovers proved decisive, with Cade Cunningham finishing with 39 points, nine assists, and six rebounds but six turnovers, including a costly miscue in overtime that helped swing momentum to Cleveland.
The loss was their third consecutive after taking a 2-0 series lead to open the best-of-seven series.
Jalen Duren has been a no-show for much of the playoffs as he got benched down the stretch of the game for Paul Reed.
Duren finished with nine points, five rebounds, and four assists, while Reed came off the bench and finished with 10 points and eight rebounds in the loss, making hustle plays to keep the Pistons in the game.
It was a masterful game by James Harden, who turned back the hands of time, finishing with 30 points, eight rebounds, and six assists in Game 5.
1st quarter
Detroit won the opening tip and immediately capitalized, with Daniss Jenkins knocking down a corner 3-pointer for a 3-0 advantage.
The possession-heavy start continued as James Harden lost the ball out of bounds, leading to a missed jumper by Tobias Harris.
Evan Mobley then turned it over, setting up Harris to assist Jenkins on another corner jumper.
Cade Cunningham committed a turnover on the next possession, and Donovan Mitchell was stripped by Ausar Thompson shortly after.
Cunningham turned it over again, throwing the ball out of bounds and leading to a short dunk by Jarrett Allen.
Harris missed from three-point range, and Mitchell grabbed the defensive rebound but traveled, as both teams were credited with three turnovers apiece early.
Jenkins later hit a contested floater off an assist from Thompson, before Harden answered with a short jumper.
Jenkins missed on the next possession.
Thompson then stole the ball from Harden and finished a coast-to-coast dunk, giving Detroit a 9-4 lead.
Mobley responded with a dunk, and Mitchell drew a foul on Harris with 6:40 remaining in the opening stretch.
The Pistons called a timeout, leading 9-6.
Mitchell converted two free throws early in the stretch to pull Cleveland within one point as the Cavaliers continued to battle back against the Pistons.
Harris missed a contested jumper on the ensuing possession, though Detroit retained the ball after the rebound went out of bounds.
Kevin Huerter later checked into the game after missing time with an injury, but Harris missed again from the field.
Harden misfired on a deep three-pointer before former Michigan Wolverines standout Caris LeVert attacked the paint and drew a foul on Dean Wade. LeVert made both free throws to give Detroit a three-point edge with under six minutes remaining in the period.
Max Strus answered with a three-pointer to tie the game before Harris scored on a layup off an assist from Jalen Duren.
Allen then made a short jumper while drawing Harris’ second foul of the game.
Allen completed the three-point play to give Cleveland its first lead.
Thompson committed a turnover that led to a steal by Merrill, but Dennis Schroder gave the ball right back before Cunningham buried a three-pointer for Detroit.
Harden responded with a floater to tie the score, though Cunningham answered with another three-pointer.
Merrill matched him from beyond the arc on the next possession.
Schroder later converted a floater while drawing a foul on LeVert, prompting Cleveland to call a timeout with 2:55 remaining.
Schroder completed a three-point play out of a timeout as the Pistons continued to trade runs with Cleveland late in the quarter.
Marcus Sasser was then called for an offensive foul before Max Strus missed from well beyond the arc. Caris LeVert secured the rebound, which led to a jumper by Cunningham.
Schroder committed a turnover on the next possession, and Cunningham converted in transition on a rim run to extend Detroit’s advantage.
Strus answered with an open three-pointer, but Isaiah Stewart responded with consecutive three-pointers that energized the crowd and helped the Pistons maintain momentum.
Merrill missed from deep before Cunningham misfired on a jumper that was rebounded by Mobley.
Mitchell then scored on a contested layup but appeared to hurt his ankle with 16.8 seconds remaining in the quarter.
Cunningham missed a jumper in the closing seconds, and Mobley grabbed the rebound before finding Mitchell for a half-court attempt that missed at the buzzer.
Detroit carried a 29-27 lead into the next quarter.
2nd quarter
Mobley opened the quarter with a short jumper to tie the game before Cunningham answered with a 10-foot shot to put Detroit back in front.
Mobley was fouled at the rim by Isaiah Stewart on a dunk attempt and split a pair of free throws after Thompson grabbed the rebound.
Thompson then found Cunningham for a contested three-pointer as the Pistons began to build momentum.
On the defensive end, Stewart blocked a shot attempt by Jaylon Tyson, and the two exchanged words after getting tied up for a jump ball.
Tyson was assessed a technical foul on the play.
Cunningham converted the technical free throw to extend Detroit’s lead to 35-30.
Stewart won the ensuing jump ball, with Tobias Harris eventually finishing a driving layup off an assist from Cunningham.
Mitchell responded with a floater for his second field goal of the game.
Harris added another floater before Tyson committed a turnover, and Sasser followed with a jumper as Detroit stretched its advantage to 41-32.
Harden checked back into the game but missed a contested three-pointer under pressure from Cunningham.
After the ball went out of bounds on the next possession, Harris knocked down a contested baseline jumper to push Detroit’s lead to 43-32.
Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson called a timeout with 8:33 remaining as the Cavaliers trailed by 11 points.
Detroit opened the quarter by making its first six shots from the field.
Mobley missed a running floater early in the stretch, though Harris secured the rebound before Detroit was whistled for a 24-second shot clock violation.
Mitchell then missed from three-point range before Harris answered with a contested jumper following a defensive rebound by Thompson.
Mobley committed a turnover on the next possession, and Jenkins capitalized by throwing an alley-oop to Thompson for a dunk as Detroit extended its lead.
Harden helped Cleveland respond after drawing a foul on Jenkins during a three-point attempt.
Harden converted all three free throws to spark the Cavaliers’ comeback effort.
Cunningham later missed Detroit’s first field-goal attempt of the quarter before Duren was called for a defensive three-second violation, leading to another free throw by Harden.
Harden missed a deep three-pointer on the next possession, and Cunningham also misfired from beyond the arc before Harden connected on a long two-point jumper.
Cunningham missed a floater before Jarrett Allen converted a finger-roll layup to cap an 8-0 Cleveland run.
Detroit called a timeout with 4:52 remaining while holding a 47-40 lead.
Schroder was called for a foul early in the closing stretch of the half before Cunningham missed a three-point attempt that was deflected out of bounds to keep possession with Detroit.
Jenkins then connected on a 12-foot jumper to extend the Pistons’ lead.
After a strong defensive sequence by Detroit, Allen was fouled by Cunningham and split a pair of free throws for Cleveland.
Jenkins missed on the next possession, leading to a defensive rebound by Max Strus. Evan Mobley later missed an 8-foot jumper before former Michigan standout Caris LeVert knocked down a 10-foot pull-up jumper for his first field goal of the game.
LeVert was then called for a foul on James Harden, who responded with a corner 3-pointer to give him 13 points.
Cleveland was assessed a defensive three-second violation shortly afterward, though Cunningham missed the technical free throw.
Detroit retained possession, and Duren found Cunningham cutting to the basket for a layup.
LeVert later stole the ball from Harden and pushed the break before Cunningham returned the pass to him for a driving basket and a foul against Strus.
LeVert completed the three-point play.
Strus answered with a 3-pointer before Jenkins missed a jumper on Detroit’s next possession.
Harden committed another turnover, and Cunningham capitalized by setting up Duren for a layup.
Mitchell scored on a nine-foot floater before Cunningham attacked the lane and drew a foul on Harden.
Cunningham made both free throws to give Detroit a 60-49 lead with 45.4 seconds remaining in the half.
Strus closed the gap with a corner three-pointer after Cunningham lost track of him defensively.
Harris missed a corner 3-pointer on Detroit’s final possession, and Thompson missed the putback attempt before Allen secured the rebound as the buzzer sounded.
Strus’s sharpshooting kept Cleveland in the game as he finished the half with 12 points, hitting four of six three pointers, while Harden finished with 13 points at the half.
Cunningham had 20 points and four assists while Harris chipped in with 10 points and three rebounds and Jenkins, who scored the teams first seven points, finished the half with nine and one assists.
Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff will need to find a way to get Duren going as he had two points, but added four rebounds and four assists as Detroit led 60-52 with 24 minutes to play.
3rd quarter
Allen missed a four-foot jumper but grabbed his own rebound and drew a foul on Thompson.
Harris secured the defensive rebound following a miss by Mobley.
Jenkins missed a layup, and Duren missed the putback attempt.
Wade grabbed the defensive rebound and found Mitchell, who missed a three-pointer.
Duren was called for a foul before Mobley found Allen for an easy basket.
Thompson missed an eight-foot floater before Wade collected another defensive rebound and found Mitchell, who was fouled by Duren.
Mitchell made both free throws to cut the lead to four before being called for a personal foul.
Cunningham found Duren for a powerful dunk before Allen was called for traveling.
Cunningham was then whistled for traveling, Detroit’s seventh turnover of the game, leading to a three-pointer by Harden off an assist from Allen.
With the deficit trimmed to three, Duren attacked the rim and drew a foul on Mobley.
He converted both free throws to give Detroit a 64-59 lead.
Harden had the ball deflected out of bounds while driving against Jenkins.
Mitchell’s airball resulted in a shot-clock violation.
Cunningham drew a foul on Mitchell, his second of the game, and made both free throws.
Mobley lobbed the ball to Allen for a dunk.
Cunningham committed another turnover before Jenkins fouled Harden, drawing boos from the crowd.
Harris blocked Mobley’s seven-foot layup attempt before Cunningham secured the defensive rebound.
Harden was called for a foul on Cunningham with 7:24 remaining.
LeVert missed a jumper before Stewart missed the putback attempt.
Harden then drilled another three-pointer to cut Detroit’s lead to 66-64.
Harden scored his 19th point of the game on the shot, prompting Bickerstaff to call a timeout with 6:55 remaining.
Out of the timeout, Cunningham found Stewart for a dunk, giving Stewart eight points in 10 minutes.
LeVert then fouled Max Strus, who made both free throws.
Harris missed a four-foot jumper before the ball found Harden.
After several empty possessions, Harris fouled Allen, who made two free throws to tie the game at 68.
Stewart missed a 3-pointer, but Detroit secured the offensive rebound.
Jenkins then missed from beyond the arc before Detroit grabbed another offensive rebound, leading to a contested three-pointer by Cunningham.
Schroder drew a foul and split a pair of free throws to give Detroit a two-point lead.
LeVert missed a 29-foot three-pointer before Jenkins answered with a 16-foot jumper.
Harden drew a foul on LeVert while converting a basket for a potential three-point play.
The sequence drew frustration from Bickerstaff, who challenged the call, arguing Harden pushed off before falling to the floor.
Officials upheld the ruling, and Harden completed the three-point play with 4:07 remaining.
Cunningham responded with a nine-foot jumper.
Schroder drew a foul on Ausar Thompson and split two free throws before Duren collected the defensive rebound.
Strus was called for a foul on Cunningham, who made both free throws to extend Detroit’s lead to four with 3:14 remaining.
Cunningham appeared to be pulled out of bounds, but the call was overturned on review. He then threw the ball away, leading to a corner three-pointer by Strus that cut the deficit to one.
Duren drew a foul on Mobley and split two free throws.
Mobley grabbed the rebound before Merrill connected on a wide-open three-pointer to give Cleveland a 79-78 lead.
LeVert missed a corner jumper that became lodged between the rim and backboard before Cleveland extended the lead to three on a dunk by Mobley.
Duren answered with a dunk, but Mobley followed with a 3-pointer to push Cleveland’s lead to four.
Cunningham missed a jumper in the closing seconds before Cleveland secured multiple offensive rebounds.
Sasser missed a buzzer-beating 3-pointer as Cleveland closed the quarter on a 32-20 run to take an 84-80 lead.
4th quarter
Cunningham opened the quarter with a three-pointer off an assist from Reed.
Reed hustled for a rebound but turned the ball over before Donovan Mitchell missed a three-point attempt.
Sasser secured the defensive rebound and found Cunningham for a contested jumper that helped Detroit regain the lead.
Cunningham was later called for a foul.
Mitchell drew a foul on Reed and made both free throws to put Cleveland back in front.
Mobley blocked Cunningham’s shot, forcing a shot-clock violation.
Harden drew a foul on a 3-point attempt and made all three free throws to give Cleveland a four-point lead with 9:40 remaining.
Reed answered with a left-handed floater over Mobley.
Harden missed a contested jumper before Detroit came up empty on the ensuing possession.
Merrill missed an uncontested three-pointer before Detroit grabbed the rebound, prompting J.B. Bickerstaff to call timeout with 8:18 to play.
Cleveland forced a shot-clock violation before Harden committed a turnover and picked up his third foul of the game.
Cunningham missed a jumper, but Reed grabbed the offensive rebound and finished with a dunk to tie the game at 89 with under seven minutes remaining.
Ausar Thompson forced a jump ball against Dean Wade at center court, but Cleveland won the tip. Merrill briefly controlled possession before Harden turned the ball over with 6:53 remaining.
Merrill then fouled Cunningham, his first foul and Cleveland’s second team foul of the quarter.
As Mitchell checked back into the game, Cunningham buried another 3-pointer. Harden answered with a missed 28-foot attempt from beyond the arc.
Detroit tipped the ball out of bounds, giving Cleveland possession, but Mobley committed a turnover.
Cunningham missed a driving layup before Harden collected the defensive rebound.
Reed blocked Harden’s seven-foot driving layup attempt, but Jarrett Allen grabbed the offensive rebound and found Mitchell for a 22-foot 3-point attempt that missed. Reed secured the defensive rebound.
Tobias Harris recorded an assist after finding Lindy Waters III Jenkins for a key 3-pointer.
Cleveland called timeout before Thompson blocked Allen’s 10-foot shot attempt. The ball nearly went out of bounds, but Jenkins hustled to save possession, leading to a fast-break finish by Thompson, who was fouled by Harden.
Cunningham was called for a loose-ball foul, leading to a jumper by Harden.
Harris missed a 22-foot 3-point attempt before Mitchell was blocked by Reed. Harris secured the rebound and quickly pushed the ball ahead to Jenkins, who finished through contact from Harden for a three-point play.
Harden responded by finding Max Strus for another 3-pointer, his sixth of the game. Bickerstaff called timeout with 3:29 remaining as Detroit held a 100-94 lead.
Thompson missed a shot before a scramble sequence led to Harris knocking down a corner three-pointer off an offensive rebound by Paul Reed.
Mobley answered with a floater, and Cleveland then forced another shot-clock violation, setting up Mobley for a three-pointer that pulled the Cavaliers closer.
Harris missed a three-point attempt and was later called for a foul on Mobley, sending him to the free-throw line to tie the game.
With 45.2 seconds remaining, Detroit called a timeout with the score tied at 103-103.
Cleveland closed the stretch on a 9-0 run to even the game.
Cunningham missed a shot, but Harris got the offensive rebound, but LeVert got called for a shot-clock violation with 20.9 to play.
With a chance to win the game at the buzzer, Thompson stripped Mitchell, and Allen tripped him, but the refs didn’t call the foul as they head into overtime.
Overtime
Cleveland won the tip, and Allen tipped in a dunk to give the Cavaliers the lead.
Cunningham missed a shot, and Reed got the offensive tip but could not convert.
Mitchell answered with an eight-foot floater.
Harden missed a 27-foot 3-pointer that went out of bounds, and Atkinson immediately called a timeout as Harden fell to the floor on the shooting motion.
The challenge was unsuccessful.
After the stoppage, Cunningham fed Reed, who was fouled by Allen.
Reed went to the line and made both free throws, snapping a 13-0 Cleveland run as Detroit trailed by two with three minutes remaining.
Mitchell drilled a three-pointer, and Cleveland forced another turnover.
Mitchell then converted again in transition off a Cunningham turnover to push the lead to seven.
Reed answered with a jumper, then helped secure a defensive stop that led to a Detroit fast-break dunk by Jenkins, cutting the deficit to three.
Harden drew a foul with 1:26 remaining and split the pair at the line.
LeVert missed a jumper, with Max Strus securing the defensive rebound.
Harden missed a shot on the next possession, and Cunningham was fouled by Strus with 28.7 seconds remaining.
Detroit called a timeout trailing by four.
Cunningham drilled a long 2-pointer with 25.9 seconds left, and Cleveland called timeout holding the ball and a 113-111 lead.
Harden drew a foul on Reed and went to the line, splitting the pair.
The ball went back to Harden, who again split a pair at the line before Tobias Harris missed a jumper.
Jenkins missed a 3-point attempt, and Mobley secured the defensive rebound and was fouled, making both free throws to push Cleveland’s lead to six.
Reed made a dunk as Cleveland wins their first road game of the playoffs.