The Detroit Pistons take a 1-0 lead over the Cleveland Cavs in the second around after Tuesday's 111-101 win
Now that the Detroit Pistons have advanced out of the first round, the Motown squad can officially say they’re building on last season’s initial taste of success with tangible progress, but the Eastern Conference seed is not satisfied just yet.
In the opening game of the second round on Tuesday night, the Pistons corrected an issue that popped up during the first round– defending home court. Matched up against a familiar Cleveland Cavaliers outfit this time around, the Pistons were able to take an early lead that was spurred on by defensive pressure and turned it into a 111-101 victory at Little Caesars Arena.
“Teams that go to game seven usually relax in this type of game,” Pistons forward Tobias Harris said after the game. “We said before this game, we said don’t let that be our team. So, for us just going out with that type of energy, type of fuel to keep us going, embrace the crowd, embrace this moment and just find our rhythm.”
During the first quarter, the Pistons wasted little time in forcing turnovers, which is an area that Detroit claimed a 20-12 edge in when the final buzzer sounded. The Pistons were switched on defensively, made appropriate rotations and caused ball security issues for the Cavs all game long. By the time the first quarter ended, the Pistons held a 37-21 lead, and they were able to ride that disparity to a key victory in game one despite a late Cleveland charge.
“I thought our defense was dialed in early in the game,” Harris said. “We just were in the moment, getting stops, getting plays. Offensively, just figuring out ways we can kind of get the mismatches we want, but just playing off our rhythm and off our movement. I thought overall we did a good job of attacking them and figuring out who we wanted to put in place and just finding our flow out there.”
In helping the Pistons establish an early 1-0 lead in the series, Harris posted another 20-point performance with eight rebounds to boot. After failing to score 20 points in consecutive games at any point during the regular season, Harris has now done so in six consecutive playoff contests, which truly underscores how the veteran power forward has been able to elevate his game during the postseason as one of the kings of the mid-range.
But along with Harris’ increased production of late, Jalen Duren is looking a bit more like his regular season self. In game seven against the Magic, Duren had a huge 15-point, 15-rebound effort to help the Pistons win their third consecutive elimination game, and the All-Star center followed up that display with another double-double, logging 11 points and 12 rebounds in the victory.
At one particular juncture late in the fourth quarter, Cade Cunningham found Duren on the move during three straight possessions, and the big man flushed the ball for a trio of dunks to help keep the Pistons ahead at a pivotal point in the game one affair. Now that JD is bouncing back, Harris offered his perspective on how Duren responded to a rocky start to the playoffs.
“I thought he was all over the game, but I thought just his movements on the offensive and defensive end,” Harris said. “He was all over the place, so just getting offensive boards, creating winning plays, extra plays for the whole group, extra effort plays. That’s what playoff basketball is about is just exerting yourself all throughout the game and stepping up. I thought he did a great job of that, of embracing this moment– the first game of the second round at home. It’s the type of energy we need from him consistently on a nightly basis, but also I just think it’s the playoffs and he’s finding his footing. Game-by-game, he’s continuing to improve and fueling off the last game.”
When Duren is operating at a high level, the Pistons offense is much more difficult to defend. Now that the Pistons have seen the Cavaliers on five separate occasions throughout the 2025-26 campaign, look for Detroit to continue prioritizing Duren’s involvement early and often when game two arrives on Thursday, May 7 at 7 pm.
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