The Detroit Pistons made a statement on their home floor, and it was hard to argue with how they did it.
Detroit opened the Eastern Conference semifinals with a 111-101 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Little Caesars Arena, taking a 1-0 series lead and giving their crowd exactly what they came for. Both teams had already fought through Game 7 battles to reach this round, so neither side was short on playoff mileage heading in.
The result carried a little extra spice too, with Kenny Atkinson facing off against his predecessor, J.B. Bickerstaff, in what shaped up to be a genuine coaching chess match from the opening tip.
Detroit controlled most of the night. The Pistons led for 91 percent of the game and pushed their advantage to as many as 18 points, their first Game 1 win since the 2008 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Orlando Magic.
Cade Cunningham Sets the Tone for Detroit Pistons
Cade Cunningham ran the show with 23 points and seven assists, steady and in control throughout. Tobias Harris added 20 points and kept his strong postseason form going, while Duncan Robinson made Detroit's offense even harder to contain, knocking down five of eight attempts from three for 19 points.
Jalen Duren owned the glass with 12 rebounds as the Pistons dominated the boards 45-41 and turned Cleveland's mistakes into points, outscoring the Cavaliers 31-16 off turnovers and 19-11 on second-chance opportunities.
Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
Cleveland Cavaliers Make a Push but Fall Short
The Cavaliers didn't go quietly. Donovan Mitchell finished with 23 points and James Harden put up 22 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to keep Cleveland alive deep into the fourth. The Cavs clawed back to tie it at 93 with 5:28 left, but Detroit responded with an 18-8 run to close the game out from there.
Harden's seven turnovers were a costly subplot to an otherwise strong performance, and Cleveland's 20 turnovers on the night compared to Detroit's 12 told a big part of the story.
Detroit's late defensive discipline is what separated the two teams when it mattered most. The Pistons held their ground and pulled away when the Cavaliers gave them reason to.
Cleveland heads back to the drawing board before Game 2 on Thursday in Detroit. The Cavaliers have the firepower to respond and have proven they can win on the road this postseason. But if Detroit's defense holds that level and Cunningham keeps dictating tempo, the Pistons will be a very difficult out in this series.
