February 27, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (12) drives toward the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley (4) during the first half at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Image Jalen Duren had 33 points and 16 rebounds, and the host Detroit Pistons rallied from a nine-point deficit late in regulation to win 122-119 in overtime against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday.
Cade Cunningham had 25 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists before fouling out in regulation. Ausar Thompson had 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists and Ron Holland had 12 points. Tobias Harris added 11 points with five rebounds, five assists and six steals.
Jarrett Allen’s 25 points and 9 rebounds led the Cavaliers. Evan Mobley had 23 points and 12 rebounds, and Sam Merrill had 20 points.
Cleveland played without its starting backcourt. Leading scorer Donovan Mitchell was sidelined with a right groin injury, and James Harden was sidelined with a fractured right thumb.
The Pistons scored the first six points of overtime. Cleveland closed the gap to one point, but Duren intercepted the ball and Harris hit a turnaround jumper to tie the game at 122-119 with 21.9 seconds left. Merrill and Mobley missed potential 3-pointers in the final seconds.
The Cavaliers led for most of the first half and ended the half with a 54-50 lead. Allen led the Cavs with 13 points and Cunningham kept the team close with 17 points.
There was a bizarre delay with 7:24 left in the third quarter and the Pistons leading 65-64. The horn honked and didn’t stop for at least 10 minutes. The team was able to warm up again before play resumed after an 18-minute delay.
Cleveland led 107-98 when Allen dunked with 2:44 left. The Pistons then began a rally. Duncan Robinson hit a 3-pointer. Thompson and Harris each had groundbreaking dunks off steals, with Harris cutting Cleveland’s lead to 109-107.
Dennis Schroder made a layup with 36 seconds left to give Cleveland a 112-109 lead. Duren gave up 1 point with a putback dunk.
Cleveland then missed two of four free throws, and Danis Jenkins was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 4.7 seconds left. He hit all three free throws to tie the game at 114 and send the game into overtime.
–Field level media
