How the Cavaliers Finally Won Their First Road Game of 2026 Playoffs in Game 5

The Cleveland Cavaliers claimed a much-needed road win, their first of the playoffs, with a 117-113 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

James Harden was one of three Cavs to score 20 points or more as he logged a team-leading 30 points in the overtime victory. Pistons guard Cade Cunningham responded with 39 points and nine assists in just over 48 minutes of play.

Detroit struck early with a quick shot from guard Daniss Jenkins, who took the place of wing Duncan Robinson in the starting lineup after he was listed as out with low back soreness.

The former two-way guard, who was signed to a standard contract a few days after the Cavs made a few key trades of their own, proved to be a bright spot for the Pistons with three early buckets and a mixed bag of moves. The key reserve would end the night with 19 points, his most since an April win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, while tacking on three assists and two blocks.

Cavs shooting finally comes through

The Cavs got into their element as they hammered the paint early on, but Detroit would stay in the lead behind key turnovers and a strong start from the 3-point line. Cunningham kept Detroit's 3-point attack alive as he hit six of the team's 11 total makes on 33 total team attempts.

The Cavs managed to outpace the Pistons from long range behind a consistent night from Max Strus, who tacked on a team-leading six makes on eight tries. Cleveland still fell behind Detroit's 48 points in the paint and 23 in the fastbreak. It would be the third time in a row the Pistons have outpaced the Cavs in the paint this series after Detroit passed Cleveland three times during the regular season.

A turnaround in the second half saw Cleveland catch up to its midwestern rivals behind the efforts of Harden, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley, who combined for seven of the Cavs' nine buckets in the third quarter. Cleveland took the lead for the first time since late in the first quarter with a Sam Merrill 3-pointer in the third, but the Pistons took it right back with the help of Cunningham and a number of cross-court plays.

Cleveland climbed back just enough to spark an overtime battle after Pistons forward Ausar Thompson made a heads-up defensive play in the fourth quarter's final seconds, a bout it would win by using their newfound momentum and a few clutch plays of their own to score 14 points to Detroit's 10.

The Cavs claimed their first road win in the playoffs since last year's series against the Indiana Pacers, where they earned a Game 3 win behind an electric 43-point night from Donovan Mitchell. Cleveland will move on to an all-important Game 6 on its home floor, where it has yet to lose a game during its 2026 playoff campaign.

The San Antonio Spurs will look to claim their Western Conference series against the Timberwolves on the same day as the Cavs across the bracket. The Oklahoma City Thunder and New York Knicks will be waiting for them in the conference finals after earning 4-0 sweeps over the Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers, respectively.

The Cavs will tip off against the Pistons at 7:00 p.m. EDT on Friday in Rocket Arena. The game can be streamed on Prime Video.

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