Cavaliers crush Pistons, advance to Eastern finals vs. Knicks

The Cleveland Cavaliers went on the road and played Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals Sunday night like they’d been there before.

That’s because they had. And the experience paid off.

Donovan Mitchell led all scorers with 26 points, Jarrett Allen enjoyed his second consecutive dominant series finale and the Cavaliers earned a spot in the Eastern Conference finals with a 125-94 shellacking of the host Detroit Pistons in Game 7 of their semifinal series.

Allen outscored rival big man Jalen Duren 23-7, Sam Merrill matched him with 23 points off the bench and Evan Mobley completed his first double-double of the series with 21 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. The fourth-seeded Cavaliers will face the third-seeded New York Knicks in a best-of-seven series that tips off Tuesday night at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

It didn’t take long for the Cavaliers to start planning ahead.

“This is fantastic. I’m excited, believe me. But we’ve got to be more disciplined (Tuesday),” Mitchell told a television audience, making a reference to two series-opening losses at Detroit, then a defeat at home in Game 6 with a chance to advance. “We shouldn’t have to wait to get hit, to get punched in the mouth and face a go-home situation.”

Overpowering the top-seeded Pistons in every possible way, the Cavaliers built as much as a 20-point lead in the first half, extended the margin to as many as 26 in the third period and coasted into their first trip to the Eastern finals since beating the Boston Celtics in seven games in 2018.

Failing to get to the Eastern finals for the 18th consecutive year, the Pistons watched All-Star guard Cade Cunningham miss all seven of his 3-point shots on a 13-point night and Tobias Harris fail to connect on any of his six shots from the field en route to five points.

En route to winning a Game 7 for the sixth consecutive time dating back to 2008, the Cavaliers outshot the Pistons 50.6% (43 of 85) to 35.3% (30 of 85) and outrebounded them 50-41.

Allen, who had gone for 22 points and 19 rebounds when Cleveland needed a Game 7 to eliminate the Toronto Raptors in Round 1, had 15 of his 23 points in the first half. He nonetheless credited Mitchell for the early blitz.

“He started out the game not trying to take it over, not trying to score every single basket,” the big man praised in a televised on-court interview moments after the final horn. “He started the game trying to distribute the ball. That’s huge for a leader like him — trying to get everybody else going, then getting himself going second.”

The blowout should help the Cavaliers prepare for what’s next, as they will have only one day off before opening in New York.

“We know it’s going to be a loud environment. But we know that we can do it,” Allen boasted. “We came into an incredible arena like this and took over the game. We just have to do it again.”

Daniss Jenkins was Detroit’s leading scorer with 17 points to go with five assists, while Duncan Robinson had 13 points and Caris LeVert 11. Duren found time for a team-high nine rebounds.

At his postgame press conference, Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff congratulated the Cavaliers while also issuing a warning to the Eastern competition.

“We knew it was going to be a tough series and a tough test for us. (The Cavaliers) outplayed us; give them credit for it,” he said. “Just like last year (when the Pistons lost in the first round to the Knicks), we’ll put it in our pocket. We’ll learn from it, and next year we’ll grow and be a better team.”

–Field Level Media