Cavaliers Take Game 7 From Detroit With Balance and Control

DETROIT — Cleveland ended the Pistons' season with a 125–94 road win in Game 7 on May 17, advancing to the Eastern Conference finals behind contributions that extended well beyond its leading scorer.

Donovan Mitchell finished with 26 points, eight assists and no turnovers. Jarrett Allen and Sam Merrill each scored 23, while Evan Mobley added 21 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. Cleveland had multiple productive options and used them to win every quarter.

The Cavaliers led 31–22 after one period and 64–47 at halftime. A 35-point third quarter widened the gap further. Detroit never found a sustained answer that could turn the deciding game back into a competitive finish.

Merrill made five of eight three-point attempts in 25 minutes off the bench. His shooting supplied an efficient scoring source while Allen and Mobley helped Cleveland produce 58 points in the paint. That combination prevented Detroit from solving the game simply by concentrating on Mitchell.

Cade Cunningham finished with 13 points on five-of-16 shooting and missed all seven of his three-point attempts. Daniss Jenkins led Detroit with 17 points. As a team, the Pistons shot 35.3 percent from the field, a difficult level of production to overcome against an opponent scoring consistently across its lineup.

The result put Cleveland in the conference finals for the first time since 2018. It also ended Detroit's playoff run with a clear distinction between reaching a decisive game and performing effectively in one.

Cleveland's strongest statement was its distribution of responsibility. Mitchell created without giving the ball away, the frontcourt produced inside and Merrill stretched the defense. Detroit could not remove enough of those options. The Cavaliers did not require one extraordinary individual total; they required several players to execute together, and the final margin showed the effect.