Detroit Pistons force Game 7, 115-94

Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons extended their season on Friday, May 15, with a 115-94 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. The result tied the series 3-3 and sent it back to Detroit for a deciding Game 7 on Sunday, May 17, according to NBA.com. Detroit led by three at halftime, then broke the game open with a 30-19 third quarter and finished with a 21-point margin at Rocket Arena in Cleveland. ### How did Detroit turn a close game into a blowout? Detroit outscored Cleveland 61-43 in the second half after taking a 54-51 lead into the break. The Pistons scored 30 points in the third quarter and held the Cavaliers to 19, creating the separation that carried through the fourth. The Pistons shot 52.4% from the field and made 16 of 36 3-point attempts. (nba.com) Cleveland shot 39.0% overall and committed 20 turnovers, compared with 17 by Detroit. ### Which Detroit players set the tone? Cunningham finished with 21 points, eight assists and five made 3-pointers in 42 minutes. Jalen Duren added 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Daniss Jenkins also scored 15 points in the start. (nba.com) Paul Reed scored 17 points off the bench and Duncan Robinson added 14, helping Detroit's reserves build a large edge in the second unit minutes. (nba.com) NBA.com's game recap said the Pistons' bench outscored Cleveland's 48-19. ### What did Detroit say mattered most? “We did what needed to be done,” Pistons coach J.B. (nba.com) Bickerstaff said after the game, according to NBA.com’s recap by the Associated Press. Bickerstaff said Detroit was at its best when “the defense and the physicality” carried it. “It’s going to be a fun environment for us and we’re excited to get back to the crib,” Cunningham said of the return to Detroit for Game 7, according to the same recap. (nba.com) ### What went wrong for Cleveland? James Harden led Cleveland with 23 points, while Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley scored 18 apiece. Mitchell shot 6-for-20 from the field, and the Cavaliers as a team made 12 of 35 from 3-point range. (nba.com) Cleveland opened the game with a three-point lead after the first quarter and trailed by only three at halftime. (nba.com) The Cavaliers could not match Detroit’s third-quarter surge and were outscored in every period after the first. ### How unusual was the margin? The Pistons’ 21-point win tied a 66-year-old NBA playoff record for the largest Game 6 road victory by a team trailing 3-2 in a series, according to NBA.com’s recap. (nba.com) The recap said the St. Louis Hawks beat the Minneapolis Lakers 117-96 in the 1960 West Division finals by the same margin. Detroit has now won four postseason games while facing elimination, NBA.com said. The AP recap noted that the Pistons had also rallied from a 3-1 deficit against Orlando in the first round. ### What happens next in the series? Game 7 is set for Sunday, May 17, at 8 p.m. ET in Detroit, according to NBA.com’s series page. (nba.com) NBA.com lists Prime Video as the outlet for the deciding game.