James Harden scored a playoff-best 30 points and Donovan Mitchell had 21, helping the Cleveland Cavaliers come back from a nine-point deficit late in regulation and beat the Detroit Pistons 117-113 in overtime on Wednesday night to take a 3-2 lead in their Eastern Conference semi-finals series.
The Pistons led by 15 points in the first half and 103-94 with two-plus minutes left. The Cavs rallied and pulled into a 103-all tie on Evan Mobley’s free throws with 45.2 seconds left.
Cleveland went on a 13-0 run and held Detroit scoreless for five minutes from late in fourth quarter to midway through overtime. The Cavs went ahead by seven with 2:39 left in overtime on Mitchell’s 3-pointer.
Cade Cunningham, who had 39 points and nine assists, made a jumper to pull the Pistons within two points with 25 seconds left.
Harden made one free throw on the ensuing possession and rebounded his missed second attempt. He made another free throw to help seal the win.
Game 6 is Friday night in Cleveland, where the fourth-seeded Cavs will get the first of two chances to advance to face the New York Knicks in the East finals.
If the top-seeded Pistons win, they will host Game 7 on Sunday.
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