DETROIT — With a truckload of storylines and narratives hanging in the balance during Game 7 on Sunday, May 17, the Cavaliers dominated the Detroit Pistons and rolled to a 125-94 victory.
The Cavs won the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinals 4-3 and thereby punched their tickets to face the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, which are set to begin at 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 19, at Madison Square Garden. The Cavs are advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2018 and the first time since 1992 without LeBron James on their roster.
The Cavs earned their first 2026 road playoff win in Game 5 against the Pistons but then squandered an opportunity to end the second-round series at Rocket Arena in Game 6, setting up Game 7 at Little Caesars Arena.
Here is how Game 7 between the fourth-seeded Cavs and top-seeded Pistons unfolded in Detroit:
Cavs defeat Pistons 125-94 in Game 7 of Eastern Conference semifinals
Guard Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with a game-high 26 points, followed by center Jarrett Allen and guard Sam Merrill with 23 points apiece and forward Evan Mobley with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Mitchell also contributed eight assists and seven rebounds.
Point guard James Harden and forward Max Strus added nine points apiece for the Cavs.
The Pistons were led by guard Daniss Jenkins with 17 points and point guard Cade Cunningham and guard Duncan Robinson with 13 points each.
The Cavs won the rebounding battle 50-41 and the turnover battle 15-13. They outscored the Pistons 58-34 in points in the paint, 18-11 in second-chance points and 22-17 in points off turnovers.
With 4:01 left in fourth quarter, Cavs empty bench vs. Pistons
The Cavs emptied their bench with 4:01 left in the fourth quarter. They led 118-88.
Cavs’ Max Strus and Pistons’ Ausar Thompson have heated exchange with 5:51 left in the fourth quarter
Pistons forward Ausar Thompson knocked down Cavs forward Max Strus as they battled for a rebound. Strus rose and got in Thompson’s face before they were quickly separated.
Thompson received a loose-ball foul, and Strus received a technical foul.
Cade Cunningham made a technical free throw, and Strus made two foul shots. The Cavs led 116-81 with 5:51 left in the fourth quarter. They had the same advantage during a timeout with 5:24 remaining.
‘Let’s go Cavs’ chants take over Little Caesars Arena
With 7:48 left in the fourth quarter and Pistons center Jalen Duren at the free-throw line, the thousands of Cavs fans in attendance made their presence known.
“Let’s go Cavs” chants broke out and momentarily filled Little Caesars Arena. Typically, Pistons fans would boo to drown out vocal support for the Cavs, but most Detroit fans had already left.
With Cavaliers in control and 10:54 left in the fourth quarter of Game 7, many Detroit Pistons fans head for exits
Cavs forward Evan Mobley stepped to the free-throw line with 10:54 left in the fourth quarter, and many Pistons fans headed for the exits at Little Caesars Arena.
Mobley made the two free throws to extend the Cavs’ lead to 106-73.
Cleveland has written its ideal Game 7 story thus far.
What’s the Cavs score in Game 7?
The Cavs are cruising to the conference finals. They’re up 100-73 entering the fourth quarter, aided by an Ausar Thompson technical foul between quarters.
Jarrett Allen (23) and Sam Merrill (20) both already have playoff career highs in points. Donovan Mitchell has 26 points and seven assists. Evan Mobley has 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists.
The Cavs have flat out dominated this game.
Pistons fans, of course, largely outnumber the Cavs fans in the building, but in that third quarter the noise level was probably close to 50-50, Cleveland-Detroit.
The Cavs are closer to being able to get some starters a little rest heading into Game 1 than they are of being in danger of losing this lead.
Jarrett Allen again leading Cavs in Game 7
Game 7 Jarrett Allen might be a thing after all.
Allen is again putting together a dominant performance in a Game 7, and he isn’t slowing down. He’s up to 20 points and seven rebounds, and is acting as the focal point of the Cavs offense while winning seemingly every battle under the rim.
A recent sequence was the best example. With James Harden at the line, Allen won the battle to his spot for the rebound and drew a foul, in turn sending him to the line. He then followed his own miss with a rebound, drawing yet another foul.
Then came a dunk and, later, another foul drawn. The Pistons have not been able to contain him at all.
The Cavs now lead 78-59 with 6:05 left. The Pistons are running out of time, and they’re not closing the gap.
Cavs extending lead in third quarter of Game 7
“Let’s go Cavs! Let’s go Cavs!” chants are ringing around Little Caesars Arena. The Cavs are now up 72-49 with 10:12 left, and the Pistons are quickly going to run out of time to make a run.
Jarrett Allen just went toe-to-toe with Jalen Duren under the rim, took contact and was able to flip it up and in. Once again, Game 7 Jarrett Allen might be sending the Cavs to the next round, just as he did against the Raptors.
What’s the Cavs score vs Pistons at halftime of Game 7?
The Cavs will take a 64-47 lead into halftime of Game 7.
Donovan Mitchell already has a series-high six assists to go with 11 points on 4-for-10 shooting. He’s routinely gotten into the paint and either gone to the rim or found Jarrett Allen or Evan Mobley for a dunk.
Game 7 Jarrett Allen might be a recurring trend. Allen was tremendous in the first half, scoring 15 points (5-for-9) to go with three rebounds, one steal and one block (he had a steal taken away in the official box score).
Sam Merrill is getting the last laugh with Ausar Thompson. Those two have seemingly had a personal rivalry the last couple games. Merrill: 15 points, 5-for-7 shooting from the floor. Thompson: three points, 1-for-4 shooting from the floor, though he does also have two blocks.
The Pistons barely showed up for that first half. Tobias Harris, for example, is 0-for-5 shooting from the floor, with most of those shots barely hitting the rim.
Cavs score in Game 7 as Cleveland leads Pistons by 20 points
The thousands of Cavs fans in attendance are having a party, as Cleveland is dominating Game 7, now up 55-35 with 2:53 left in the second quarter.
Donovan Mitchell (11 points, four assists), is driving to the hoop a ton tonight and either finishing or finding a big man for a dunk. Sam Merrill is having a terrific Game 7, already with 15 points on four 3s. And Jarrett Allen, again, is having his best game of the series in Game 7, already with 12 points, three rebounds two steals and a block.
Jarrett Allen commits hard foul on Jalen Duren
Game 7 is getting a bit chippy.
Following a tie-up for the ball, Jarrett Allen essentially pushed Jalen Duren out of bounds. Earlier, Ausar Thompson lowered his shoulder and just about knocked Sam Merrill’s teeth out.
Some frustration might be building for the Pistons during a truly abysmal offensive showing in the biggest game of their season. Detroit is shooting 34 percent from the floor and 28 percent from 3-point range.
J.B. Bickerstaff, Pistons irate with James Harden flop
The Pistons crowd, along with J.B. Bickerstaff on the sideline, are all going nuts following two foul calls in which it looked like the Cavs might have embellished — to put it lightly — some contact.
First, Dennis Schroder hit the floor after Duncan Robinson’s hand met his head area. Then, as James Harden was barely touched on the arm, he shot his head back and received the foul call. As the replay was shown, the Detroit crowd erupted, and Bickerstaff marched up and down the sidelined before pleading his case with the refs.
The Pistons cannot hit a shot and the Cavs are getting every call they ask for, which is a bad combo for Detroit.
The Cavs now lead 47-33 with 4:52 left in the first half.
Cavs lead by 15 over Pistons in Game 7
The Pistons have put together a truly terrible offensive showing in Game 7, and the Cavs have used it to open up at 15-point lead. Cleveland is now up 41-26 with 7:20 left in the second quarter.
After Ausar Thompson again looked like he was targeting Sam Merrill with extra contact, the latter is having the last laugh, as Merill has hit three 3s while Thompson is 0-for-3 from the floor, including two misses right at the rim.
Detroit is shooting just 10-for-30 from the floor while losing the rebounding battle 18-13. If those trends don’t turn around soon, the Cavs are heading to New York and the top-seeded Pistons are going home early.
Donovan Mitchell’s near half-court buzzer-beater 3-pointer gives Cavaliers 31-22 lead vs. Pistons at end of first quarter
Guard Donovan Mitchell made a near half-court 3-pointer at the buzzer to extend the Cavs’ lead at the end of the first quarter to 31-22. Mitchell banked in the 33-foot shot from the Pistons logo.
Mitchell, center Jarrett Allen and guard Sam Merrill led the Cavs with six points apiece in the first quarter. Mitchell also had three assists.
Guard Daniss Jenkins led the Pistons with six points in the opening quarter.
Merrill and Mitchell made back-to-back 3-pointers before Pistons guard Marcus Sasser answered with a 3 of his own with 5.3 seconds left. But Mitchell stole the spotlight with his wild shot at the buzzer.
Cavs and Pistons score tied 13-13 with 4:33 left in the first quarter
After Pistons guard Caris LeVert stole the ball from Cavs center Jarrett Allen, LeVert produced a fast-break layup to tie the score 13-13 with 4:33 left in the first quarter.
Then Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson and small forward Max Strus ripped into official Ben Taylor during a timeout. Atkinson was visibly livid.
Cavaliers lead Pistons 8-7 with 6:34 left in the first quarter of Game 7
The good news for the Cavs is they led 8-7 with 6:34 left in the first quarter, so, thus far, they have avoided the dreaded slow start.
Another positive development for the Cavs is guard Donovan Mitchell has been aggressive out of the gate. He has been driving through the lane and dishing the ball to teammates. He had an assist on three of the Cavs’ first four baskets, an alley-oop dunk by forward Evan Mobley, a dunk by center Jarrett Allen and a layup by Allen.
Below is some pregame information.
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert sends thousands of Cleveland Cavaliers fans to Detroit for Game 7
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert sent more than 20 buses carrying thousands of Cavaliers fans and team members to Detroit for Game 7, a Cavs spokesperson confirmed.
Gilbert also sent Cavs fans and staff to Game 5 in Detroit and Cavaliers team members to Games 1 and 2 at Little Caesars Arena.
Where to watch Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Detroit Pistons Game 7. Cavs playoffs TV channel and streaming info
Game 7 between the Cavs and Pistons will be televised nationally by Prime Video.
Cavs radio station info
The local radio broadcast of Game 7 can be heard via WTAM (1100-AM) or WMMS (100.7-FM).
Cavs-Pistons Game 7 injury report
The Pistons had listed guards Duncan Robinson (lower back) and Caris LeVert (right heel contusion) as questionable for Game 7. Both played through their ailments in Game 6, and both will be available for Game 7.
Wing Kevin Huerter was also questionable with a left adductor strain and is available, putting the Pistons at full strength.
For the Cavs, forward Larry Nance Jr. has been ruled out for Game 7 with an illness. He was initially listed as questionable to play. He hasn’t been in the playoff rotation when healthy.
Cavs vs Pistons Game 7 starting lineup
The Cavs are making a change to their starting lineup.
Along with the normal big four of Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, Max Strus will be in the starting lineup, pushing Dean Wade to the bench.
Pistons vs Cavs Game 7 starting lineup
The Pistons are starting:
Cavaliers-Pistons playoff series scores
When do the Cavs play their next game?
To play again this season, the Cavs must beat the Pistons in Game 7. If they do, the Cavs will reach the Eastern Conference Finals. Here’s what we know about that schedule:
Eastern Conference playoff bracket 2026
Here are the second-round matchups:
Here are the first-round results:
Cleveland Cavaliers playoff history during their Donovan Mitchell era
This is the fourth consecutive season the Cavs have made the playoffs.
Ryan Lewis and Nate Ulrich cover the Cavaliers for the Akron Beacon Journal. The Beacon Journal sports department can be reached at BJSports@thebeaconjournal.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavaliers score vs Pistons. Donovan Mitchell onto 1st conference final
Reporting by Ryan Lewis and Nate Ulrich, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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