Detroit Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins (24) celebrates a win with guard Cade Cunningham (2) as Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley (4) walks by in the course of the final minute of Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
DETROIT— Cade Cunningham had 25 points and 10 assists, Tobias Harris scored 21 points and the Detroit Pistons beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 107-97 on Thursday night to take a 2-0 lead of their second-round series.
Game 3 is Saturday in Cleveland, where the Cavs were 4-0 in the primary round against Toronto.
READ: NBA Playoffs: Pistons defeat Cavaliers in Game 1
The highest-seeded Pistons have won five straight games since Orlando put them getting ready to elimination in the primary round.
Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Jarrett Allen had 22 points and 7 rebounds, bouncing back from a poor performance in Game 1 for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers.
Detroit Pistons guard Daniss Jenkins, left, tries to knock the ball away from Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell while Pistons center Jalen Duren, rear, helps defend in the course of the second half in Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series, Thursday, May 7, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)
James Harden, though, missed 10 of 13 shots and was limited to 10 points. Harden had 4 turnovers, including one with 33 seconds left when the Cavs trailed by just six.
Cleveland’s Max Strus scored just three points after he had 19 within the series opener. The Cavaliers went 0 for 11 from 3-point range within the fourth quarter, with Strus having 4 of the misses.
Detroit’s Duncan Robinson had 17 points, making 5 of 9 3-pointers, and Daniss Jenkins got here off the bench to attain 14 points, his third straight game in double figures.
Cleveland made the primary shot and didn’t lead again until Evan Mobley’s dunk put the visitors ahead 81-79 early within the fourth quarter.
The Pistons led by 11 points in the primary quarter and 14 within the second quarter, but they didn’t draw back until the ultimate minutes.
The Cavs scored the primary six points of the ultimate quarter and Detroit responded with plays at each ends of the court.
Robinson had a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 9:40 left and Cunningham made a 3-pointer to place the Pistons ahead by nine points with 2:12 to go, sealing the victory.
The Pistons also won Game 1 by 10 points with each Cunningham and Mitchell scoring 23 points.
Cavs reserve guard Sam Merrill missed Game 2 with a hamstring injury after he was hurt in within the series opener. He averaged 12.8 points in the course of the regular season and scored in double digits twice within the seven-game, first-round series against the Raptors.