Cleveland Cavaliers top Detroit Pistons in overtime for 3-2 series NBA play-off series lead

LOS ANGELES – The Cleveland Cavaliers knew what they would be getting from James Harden when they signed him in February – experience and calmness.

On May 13, the Cavs held off the Detroit Pistons 117-113 in overtime to move within one victory of advancing in the NBA play-offs.

Cleveland, fuelled by 30 points from veteran Harden, claimed their first road win of these play-offs to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semi-final series.

They will try to close it out at home when they host Game 6 on May 15 (May 16, Singapore time), with the New York Knicks awaiting in the conference finals.

“Great time to have a first road win,” Harden told broadcaster ESPN, after Cleveland notched their third straight victory to move within sight of their first trip to the conference finals since 2018.

The Cavs trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half against the top-seeded Pistons, who were led by 39 points from Cade Cunningham.

The Pistons rallied in the third and appeared to have gained control with a 12-0 scoring run in a see-saw fourth quarter. But once again the Cavaliers responded, Evan Mobley coming up with a dunk and two free throws to tie it up with 45.2 seconds remaining – part of a 13-0 Cleveland run bridging the fourth quarter and the start of overtime that put the Cavs ahead for good.

Donovan Mitchell added 21 points and Max Strus chipped in 20 off the bench for the Cavs.

Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said Harden’s cool head in key moments was just what the Cavaliers had been looking for when they signed the 36-year-old three-time scoring champion in February.

“Big reason we got him, that’s what we expected,” Atkinson said. “He adds a maturity and a poise, calmness to our group, which we needed.”

Cunningham added nine assists and seven rebounds for the Pistons, who must win in Cleveland to force the series to return to Detroit for Game 7.

Harden said the Cavs, unbeaten at home this post-season, cannot afford to let their guard down against a Detroit team who rallied from 3-1 down to beat the Orlando Magic in the first round.

“Very, very crazy team defensively,” he said.

“We’ve seen what they’ve done. They’ve come back from 3-1, so from the beginning of the game we’ve got to make sure our mindset is right and we do the small things to finish the series.”

Detroit coach J.B. Bickerstaff vowed the Pistons would not go down easily.

“We’re not going to go down without a fight,” he said.

“That’s just who we are. We’ve been in this position before; we were able to work our way through it.

“I expect our guys to be ready mentally and to go out and compete at a high level and bring this thing back (to Detroit).” AFP