Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) looses the ball against the defense from Detroit Pistons forward Ronald Holland II during the first half Thursday.
Duane Burleson | AP Photo
Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jaylon Tyson, left, drives against Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) during the first half Thursday.
Duane Burleson | AP Photo
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 in their second-round series.
Game 3 is Saturday in Cleveland, where the Cavs were 4-0 in the first round against Toronto.
The top-seeded Pistons have won five straight games since Orlando put them on the brink of elimination in the first round.
Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Jarrett Allen had 22 points and seven rebounds, bouncing back from a poor performance in Game 1 for the fourth-seeded Cavs.
James Harden, though, missed 10 of 13 shots and was limited to 10 points. Harden had four 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 in the series opener. The Cavaliers went 0 for 11 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter, with Strus having four of the misses.
Detroit’s Duncan Robinson had 17 points, making 5 of 9 3-pointers, and Daniss Jenkins came off the bench to score 14 points, his third straight game in double figures.
Cleveland made the first shot and didn’t lead again until Evan Mobley’s dunk put the visitors ahead 81-79 early in the fourth quarter.
The Pistons led by 11 points in the first quarter and 14 in the second quarter, but they didn’t pull away until the final minutes.
The Cavs scored the first six points of the final quarter and Detroit responded with plays at both ends of the court.
Robinson had a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 9:40 left and Cunningham made a 3-pointer to put the Pistons ahead by nine points with 2:12 to go, sealing the victory.
The Pistons also won Game 1 by 10 points with both Cunningham and Mitchell scoring 23 points.
Cavs reserve guard Sam Merrill missed Game 2 with a hamstring injury after he was hurt in in the series opener. He averaged 12.8 points during the regular season and scored in double digits twice in the seven-game, first-round series against the Raptors.
Knicks’ Anunoby questionable for Game 3
NEW YORK — OG Anunoby has a strained right hamstring, but the New York Knicks forward appears to have avoided a serious injury after leaving late in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Anunoby will be listed as questionable to play in Game 3 at Philadelphia on Friday, a person with knowledge of the details told The Associated Press on Thursday. Anunoby will be considered day to day.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because there had been no announcement about Anunoby. His status was first reported by ESPN.
Anunoby was having another strong game Wednesday before appearing to suffer a leg injury and motioning to come out of the game. He went to the locker room area and did not return to the bench before the end of the Knicks’ 108-102 victory that gave them a 2-0 lead.
Anunoby scored 24 points and is averaging 21.4 per game in the postseason while shooting 61.9% from the field and 53.8% from 3-point range.
The 6-foot-7 Anunoby, also considered the Knicks’ top defender, injured his hamstring two years ago in the second round as the Knicks were taking a 2-0 lead over Indiana. He missed the next four games and played just a few minutes in Game 7 as the Pacers rallied to win the series.
Hornets’ Lee gets contract extention
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Charlotte Hornets gave head coach Charles Lee a contract extension on Thursday following a season in which the team improved its win total by 25 games.
Details of Lee’s new deal was not released by the team.
“Charles has done an outstanding job establishing a foundation for who we want to be as a team,” Hornets president of basketball operations Jeff Peterson said. “From Day One, Charles and his staff have prioritized player development, creating an environment where each of our players are committed to getting better and continue to improve.”
After winning 19 games in Lee’s first season with the team, the Hornets got hot late in the season and rallied to win 44 games before falling to the Orlando Magic in the play-in tournament.
The 25-win improvement over his first season represented the largest year-over-year win total improvement in franchise history.
“I’m excited about the direction we’re headed and our team’s bright future,” Lee said. “Our players have shown a real commitment to growth, and I’m proud of the culture we’re establishing together.”
Lee’s next goal is to snap the Hornets’ 11-year playoff drought, the longest in the NBA.
After starting the season 16-28, the Hornets finished strong with a 28-10 record, and rookie Kon Knueppel and LaMelo Ball finished 1-2 in the league in 3-pointers made.
Under Lee, the Hornets had the No. 1 net rating (+10.5) in the NBA from Jan. 1 until the end of the regular season, ranking atop the league in offensive rating (120.7) and fifth in defensive rating (110.2).
Charlotte led the league in rebounding percentage (54.8%), second-chance points (19.0) and 3-pointers made per game (17.3) since Jan 1 and went on to beat Miami in the play-in tournament for its first postseason win since 2016 in the No. 9 seed vs. No. 10 seed play-in game.
The Hornets finished January with an 11-6 record and tied for the highest point differential on the road (+151) in any month in NBA history, earning Lee the award for Eastern Conference Coach of the Month.
Charlotte also set a franchise record with 10 straight road wins and tied an NBA single-season record with eight road wins by 25-plus points.
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