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With Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on the line, Ausar Thompson mirrored Donovan Mitchell's drive to the rim and swatted his shot attempt from behind. Thompson was then bumped and tripped from behind by Jarrett Allen as he secured the rebound.
The Detroit Pistons – both players and coaches – believed Thompson was fouled. The Little Caesars Arena crowd believed Thompson was fouled (aside from perhaps a portion bused up from Cleveland. The problem for the Pistons? Referee Tony Brothers didn't blow his whistle, and the clock expired to send the game into overtime tied at 103 on Wednesday, May 13.
The Cleveland Cavaliers went on to win, 117-113, to take a 3-2 series lead home to Ohio. The no-call on Thompson was controversial in the moment and a pain point for the Pistons after the game. Had it been called, Thompson would've gone to the line with mere seconds left with a chance to win it and give his team control of the series.
SHAWN WINDSOR: Pistons must forget one of the worst collapses in Detroit sports history
"He fouled Ausar," coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "It’s clear. He trips him when he’s going for a loose ball. End-of-game situation, that’s tough."
Instead, the Pistons will travel to Cleveland on Friday tasked with fighting off elimination. But they have to blame themselves first, rather than the officials.
They led by nine points with three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. The no-call was enabled by the Pistons' collapse in the waning moments of the game, which players acknowledged during postgame interviews. The Pistons led the Cavaliers for more than 36 minutes – three-fourths of the game – and by as many as 15 points.
With an opportunity to seal the win, they missed shot after shot in the closing minutes and allowed Cleveland to end the fourth on a 9-0 run.
MITCH ALBOM: Mitch Albom: Cade Cunningham, Pistons outshined by Cavs starting stars
"Tonight was tough," said Cade Cunningham, who finished with 39 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals. "Tough loss, obviously. We wanted to protect our home court. We failed to do that. Being up 3-2 is an advantage for them. It’s first to four wins, though. We know that. We’ve had our back against the wall before. At the end of the day, if we can't win a game on the road, how far are we really going to get in the playoffs, how far are we going to get in this league? So we’ve gotta go win a game on the road and that’s what we’re going to do."
The Pistons' last basket of the fourth came with exactly three minutes remaining: a corner 3-pointer from Tobias Harris to extend their lead to 103-94. They proceeded to miss their final six shot attempts before OT.
The nightmare scenario: Cunningham clanked a midrange jumper, and Daniss Jenkins missed a 3-point attempt following an offensive rebound. Cleveland blitzed Cunningham late to get the ball out of his hands. He found Paul Reed open rolling into space, but Reed drove into Evan Mobley and missed a layup. The following possession, Cunningham gave the ball up to Jenkins, who hit Harris on the wing for an open 3-point attempt that missed.
Meanwhile, Cleveland got clutch contributions from Mobley, who scored the Cavs' final seven points of the period, capped by a 3-pointer with 1:22 remaining and two free throws with 45 seconds left.
"We weren’t supposed to go to overtime," said Jenkins, who finished with 19 points starting in place of an injured Duncan Robinson. "We did and we still are supposed to come out with the win, but you’ve got that type of lead, man, in the playoffs. We knew what game this was, how important it was. We can’t lose that win. We’ve gotta be better."
Their shooting woes continued into overtime: four straight misses and a turnover before Reed scored their first field goal – a dunk, with 2:13 to go. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, opened overtime with a 9-2 run and led 112-105 after a layup from Mitchell. The Pistons got within two with 25 seconds left, but James Harden made a free throw, missed the second, rebounded his own miss and then earned another trip to the line to make it a two-possession game.
Jenkins and Harris missed 3-pointers the following possession, and Mobley iced the Cavaliers' win with two more free throws.
"I made a lot of mistakes tonight, the team made some mistakes," Cunningham said. "That’s part of the game. Giving up that lead and not executing down the stretch is what I think really hurt, the free throw block out at the end with James Harden, all those little things hurt. We’ve gotta learn from it and we’ve gotta be better from it."
The no-call on the late Thompson play exacerbated the sense of disparities at the free throw line, dating back to Game 3. The Cavaliers took nearly double the Pistons' free throws in both Games 4 (41-23) and 5 (38-20), a stark difference from earlier in the series, when the Pistons got the benefit of the whistle.
Officiating has become a point of frustration for the Pistons. But they have no choice but to forget and move on as they head to Cleveland to try Friday (7 p.m., Prime Video) to force a Game 7 in Detroit on Sunday.
"You’re going to have to choke the life out of this team," Bickerstaff said. "We’re not gonna go down without a fight, we’re not gonna go down without kicking, punching, grabbing, clawing, and that’s just who we are. And we’ve been in this position before. And we were able to work our way through it. I expect our guys to be ready mentally to go out and compete at a high level, and bring this thing back here."
Contact Omari Sankofa II at [email protected]. Follow him on X and/or Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons blame themselves, not refs' no-call, for Game 5 loss
Continue reading...
The Detroit Pistons – both players and coaches – believed Thompson was fouled. The Little Caesars Arena crowd believed Thompson was fouled (aside from perhaps a portion bused up from Cleveland. The problem for the Pistons? Referee Tony Brothers didn't blow his whistle, and the clock expired to send the game into overtime tied at 103 on Wednesday, May 13.
The Cleveland Cavaliers went on to win, 117-113, to take a 3-2 series lead home to Ohio. The no-call on Thompson was controversial in the moment and a pain point for the Pistons after the game. Had it been called, Thompson would've gone to the line with mere seconds left with a chance to win it and give his team control of the series.
SHAWN WINDSOR: Pistons must forget one of the worst collapses in Detroit sports history
"He fouled Ausar," coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "It’s clear. He trips him when he’s going for a loose ball. End-of-game situation, that’s tough."
Instead, the Pistons will travel to Cleveland on Friday tasked with fighting off elimination. But they have to blame themselves first, rather than the officials.
They led by nine points with three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. The no-call was enabled by the Pistons' collapse in the waning moments of the game, which players acknowledged during postgame interviews. The Pistons led the Cavaliers for more than 36 minutes – three-fourths of the game – and by as many as 15 points.
With an opportunity to seal the win, they missed shot after shot in the closing minutes and allowed Cleveland to end the fourth on a 9-0 run.
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MITCH ALBOM: Mitch Albom: Cade Cunningham, Pistons outshined by Cavs starting stars
"Tonight was tough," said Cade Cunningham, who finished with 39 points, nine assists, seven rebounds and two steals. "Tough loss, obviously. We wanted to protect our home court. We failed to do that. Being up 3-2 is an advantage for them. It’s first to four wins, though. We know that. We’ve had our back against the wall before. At the end of the day, if we can't win a game on the road, how far are we really going to get in the playoffs, how far are we going to get in this league? So we’ve gotta go win a game on the road and that’s what we’re going to do."
The Pistons' last basket of the fourth came with exactly three minutes remaining: a corner 3-pointer from Tobias Harris to extend their lead to 103-94. They proceeded to miss their final six shot attempts before OT.
The nightmare scenario: Cunningham clanked a midrange jumper, and Daniss Jenkins missed a 3-point attempt following an offensive rebound. Cleveland blitzed Cunningham late to get the ball out of his hands. He found Paul Reed open rolling into space, but Reed drove into Evan Mobley and missed a layup. The following possession, Cunningham gave the ball up to Jenkins, who hit Harris on the wing for an open 3-point attempt that missed.
Meanwhile, Cleveland got clutch contributions from Mobley, who scored the Cavs' final seven points of the period, capped by a 3-pointer with 1:22 remaining and two free throws with 45 seconds left.
"We weren’t supposed to go to overtime," said Jenkins, who finished with 19 points starting in place of an injured Duncan Robinson. "We did and we still are supposed to come out with the win, but you’ve got that type of lead, man, in the playoffs. We knew what game this was, how important it was. We can’t lose that win. We’ve gotta be better."
Their shooting woes continued into overtime: four straight misses and a turnover before Reed scored their first field goal – a dunk, with 2:13 to go. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, opened overtime with a 9-2 run and led 112-105 after a layup from Mitchell. The Pistons got within two with 25 seconds left, but James Harden made a free throw, missed the second, rebounded his own miss and then earned another trip to the line to make it a two-possession game.
Jenkins and Harris missed 3-pointers the following possession, and Mobley iced the Cavaliers' win with two more free throws.
"I made a lot of mistakes tonight, the team made some mistakes," Cunningham said. "That’s part of the game. Giving up that lead and not executing down the stretch is what I think really hurt, the free throw block out at the end with James Harden, all those little things hurt. We’ve gotta learn from it and we’ve gotta be better from it."
The no-call on the late Thompson play exacerbated the sense of disparities at the free throw line, dating back to Game 3. The Cavaliers took nearly double the Pistons' free throws in both Games 4 (41-23) and 5 (38-20), a stark difference from earlier in the series, when the Pistons got the benefit of the whistle.
You must be registered for see images attach
Officiating has become a point of frustration for the Pistons. But they have no choice but to forget and move on as they head to Cleveland to try Friday (7 p.m., Prime Video) to force a Game 7 in Detroit on Sunday.
"You’re going to have to choke the life out of this team," Bickerstaff said. "We’re not gonna go down without a fight, we’re not gonna go down without kicking, punching, grabbing, clawing, and that’s just who we are. And we’ve been in this position before. And we were able to work our way through it. I expect our guys to be ready mentally to go out and compete at a high level, and bring this thing back here."
Contact Omari Sankofa II at [email protected]. Follow him on X and/or Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Pistons blame themselves, not refs' no-call, for Game 5 loss
Continue reading...
