NBA Playoffs Takeaways: Cavaliers Steal Game 5 in Overtime After Questionable No-Call

What a finish.

After the Pistons controlled the action for most of the night, taking a nine-point lead into the final three minutes of the fourth quarter, the Cavaliers suddenly came to life, closing regulation on a 9–0 run and then starting overtime on a 9–2 run to take control of the series in front of a stunned Detroit crowd.

Cleveland got a little bit of help from a no-call in the final seconds of regulation, when it appeared that Ausar Thompson was tripped up by Jarrett Allen on a play that could have sent Detroit to the line with a chance to win.

It’s understandable that the whistle got swallowed in that moment, but it won’t make the loss sting any less for the Pistons.

It was the first road win of the postseason for the Cavaliers, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Cleveland now takes a 3–2 lead back home for Game 6 of the series, with the chance to punch its ticket to the Eastern Conference finals on Friday night.

Below we break down three takeaways we have after the Cavs’ stunning comeback.

Cavaliers pull a rabbit out of the hat to get first road win of postseason

Before Wednesday night’s Game 5 in Detroit, Cleveland was 0–5 on the road thus far in the playoffs. If the Cavs weren’t perfect at home, well, they wouldn’t still be playing right now. The team that broke serve first would get a huge advantage in this series and the Cavs finally did so in Game 5, although it looked like the road skid would continue for much of the game.

The Pistons led by as many as 15 points and were up by nine with three minutes left in regulation. What followed was even more pressure on Cunningham from the Cleveland defense as the Cavs made anyone but Detroit’s star beat them. That was the right move as Cunningham is the center of Detroit’s offense and on this night, his supporting cast struggled to provide much of anything at points over the course of the game. Detroit sorely missed Duncan Robinson, who would’ve opened up the floor for Cunningham with his shooting ability.

The two most important elements for the Cavs, however, were cutting down turnovers and letting Max Strus cook. Cleveland gave up 20 points off turnovers in the first half, then tightened up and only surrendered seven more points off turnovers for the rest of the game. Strus knocked down six threes and forced a big steal on Cunningham in overtime that saw the Cavs open their lead to seven. 

Cade Cunningham can’t do this alone

Cade Cunningham was electric on Wednesday night, and for great stretches of the game was the entirety of the Pistons’ offensive attack. He finished the night with 39. Daniss Jenkins, starting in his first playoff game in relief of Robinson who was out due to injury, put up 19 points, but no other player on Detroit scored more than 13.

On the one hand, a team’s superstar playing like an absolute superstar in the biggest moments can only be a good thing. Cunningham has already proven he’s amongst the best talents in the league, and his run this postseason is only further moving him up the ranks.

But if there’s one thing we learned on Wednesday, it’s that the Pistons need other players to step up  on offense if they’re going to come back in this series. Through the final stretch of the fourth quarter as the Cavaliers mounted their comeback, and then through the entirety of overtime, Cleveland effectively shut Cunningham out and dared any other Pistons player to beat them. While Paul Reed tried his best, the effort fell short.

We know this Pistons team is capable of a comeback—they rallied the troops in impressive fashion from a 3–1 deficit against the Magic in the first round—but these Cavs are a better team than Orlando was. Credit to Cunningham, as he really almost single-handedly got the Pistons over the line, but it wasn’t enough.

Can James Harden build off this performance to help Cavs close out the Pistons at home?

No team wants to play a Game 7 on the road, so you have to assume the Cavs won’t let up once they return home. James Harden didn’t have his best night shooting the ball, just 8-of-21 from the field and 3-for-10 from three, but he still ended the game with 30 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three blocks. Harden got to the free-throw line 14 times in Game 5 and knocked down 11 of his foul shots, but the most important free throw was one he missed.

With 24.4 seconds left in overtime, he missed a foul shot with Cleveland up three which gave the Pistons the chance to get the ball back down just one possession. Detroit didn’t fill the lane, however, and Harden was able to rebound his own miss and return to the stripe to put the Cavs up two possessions.

This wasn’t a perfect performance from Harden or his co-star Donovan Mitchell, who also struggled from the floor. Cleveland was still able to pull out a win in spite of that, which is what good teams do in the postseason. Strus certainly helped turn the game Cleveland’s way, but now the question is whether Harden and Mitchell can put up a signature performance to send the Cavs to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since LeBron James was on the roster.

Below you can check out the action as it happened live on Wednesday night.

Pistons vs. Cavaliers NBA Playoffs Game 5 live updates, stats and scores

How we got here in the Pistons-Cavaliers series

• Game 1: Pistons 111, Cavaliers 101 (Detroit)
• Game 2: Pistons 107, Cavaliers 97 (Detroit)
• Game 3: Cavaliers 116, Pistons 109 (Cleveland)
• Game 4: Cavaliers 112, Pistons 103 (Cleveland)

Detroit got a real test in the first round, having to come back from a 3–1 series deficit against the eighth-seeded Magic to avoid a seismic early upset. Cleveland’s first-round series against the Raptors also went seven games, and through four games had a very similar shape to this series. As the higher-seeded team, the Cavs won Games 1, 2, 5 and 7 at home, dropping every game in Toronto.

In order to advance to the Eastern Conference finals against New York, Cleveland will need to win its first game of the postseason away from home.

Pistons vs. Cavs game time, broadcast information

Wednesday’s Game 5 is set for an 8 p.m. ET tipoff, with ESPN carrying coverage of the game.

Game 6 will take place on Friday, May 15, at 7 p.m. ET, the first game of a double-header before Spurs-Timberwolves Game 6. Both games are on Prime Video. If necessary, Game 7 will take place on Sunday, May 17, with the time and broadcast information has not yet been determined.

More NBA Playoffs From Sports Illustrated

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