Cavs Must Win Road Game 7 After 115–94 Home Defeat to Pistons
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CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers lost their first home game of the postseason Thursday night, falling 115–94 to the Detroit Pistons in Game 6 and forcing a deciding Game 7 on the road.
Cleveland entered the night holding a 3-2 series lead and needing one more victory to reach the Eastern Conference finals. Instead, the team trailed for 38 minutes, fell behind by as many as 22 in the fourth quarter and never recovered.
“We missed an opportunity,” guard Donovan Mitchell said. “We can’t do anything about it. Got to go out there and win on the road.”
Turnovers and Cold Shooting
Guard James Harden paced the Cavaliers with 23 points but committed eight of the club’s 20 turnovers, miscues that turned into 28 Detroit points. Cleveland shot just 39 percent from the field, while Mitchell finished with 18 points on 6-for-20 shooting and forward Evan Mobley also scored 18.
“We never really got it to that second level,” Harden said. “We had opportunity in small spurts but it was never really a consistent flow on both ends.”
Brief signs of momentum—a second-quarter burst and energy from reserve Sam Merrill after a flagrant foul sequence—quickly evaporated as defensive lapses and sloppy inbounds plays allowed Detroit to answer each time.
All on the Line
Game 7 will decide whether Cleveland advances or sees its season end after once holding a 3-2 advantage. “Everything you want is on the other side of hard,” Mitchell said. “Nothing good comes easy. We have another opportunity. That’s the mindset.”
The winner of Sunday’s matchup will claim a spot in the conference finals; the loser goes home.
Source: Hoops Wire
