Pistons erase 22-point halftime deficit
- Detroit beat Orlando 93-79 in Game 6 after trailing by 22 at halftime and 24 early in the third, forcing a Sunday Game 7. - Cade Cunningham scored 32, Detroit closed on a 55-19 second half, and Orlando missed 27 of its final 28 shots. - The No. 1 Pistons were minutes from a historic upset loss; now the series goes back to Detroit tied 3-3.
Detroit’s season looked cooked by halftime. Then the Pistons turned Game 6 into one of those playoff swings that feels fake while you’re watching it. They beat Orlando 93-79 on Friday night after trailing by 22 at the half and by 24 early in the third, which means this first-round series is going to a Game 7 on Sunday in Detroit. Cade Cunningham was the closer, but the bigger story was the defense — Orlando basically stopped functioning for an entire half. (nba.com) ### How bad was it for Detroit early? Really bad. Orlando won the second quarter 35-12, pushed the lead to 62-38 early in the third, and had the building ready for a clincher. Detroit couldn’t get organized, couldn’t score, and looked like a No. 1 seed about to become the next favorite to get bounced by an eight seed. (nba.com) ### So what flipped? Defense first. Detroit started shrinking the floor, forcing tougher drives, and turning every Orlando possession into a wrestling match. Once the Pistons cut the margin to something manageable, the game changed from “Orlando in control” to “Orlando cannot buy a basket.” Detroit f(nba.com)r is the whole game in one line. (news-journalonline.com) ### How cold did Orlando get? Historically cold. The Magic scored just 19 points in the second half — the fewest points in a half in NBA playoff history — and missed 27 of their final 28 shots. At one point they missed 23 straight field goals. That is not just a bad stretch. That is a complete offensive collapse under playoff pressure. (espn.com) ### Where does Cade fit into this? Right in the middle of the rescue. Cunningham finished with 32 points, and the wild part is that he personally scored more in the second half than Orlando did as a team. When Detroit finally had the game slowed to its preferred pace, Cunningham got to his spots, k(espn.com) instead of just vibes. (nba.com) ### Was this just Cade? No — and that matters. The comeback only works if the stops keep coming, and Detroit got a full-team defensive effort. NBA.com’s Game 6 takeaways leaned on that exact point: the Pistons “completely shut down” Orlando late. Cunningham was the shot-maker, but the comeback belong(nba.com)he game die when it still looked hopeless. (nba.com) ### Why does this hit so hard? Because the stakes were bigger than one game. Detroit entered as the East’s No. 1 seed, so losing this series in six to Orlando would have been a brutal first-round flameout. Instead, the Pistons dragged the series back home tied 3-3. That changes(nba.com)oor. (nba.com) ### What should you watch in Game 7? Basically one question: can Orlando score in the half court when things get tight? The Magic showed they can bully Detroit for stretches, but Game 6 exposed the floor of their offense in the harshest way possible. If Cunningham controls tempo again and Detroit’s d(nba.com)l feel like the steadier team. But if Orlando rediscovers even average shot-making, this whole script can flip again. (nba.com) ### Bottom line This wasn’t just a comeback. It was a total rewrite of the series. Detroit went from staring at an upset exit to hosting Game 7, and Orlando now has to explain how a 24-point lead turned into a 14-point loss. (nba.com)
