3 days ago
5
The back half of the NBA conference semifinals tipped off with another pair of series openers.
In the first game Tuesday, May 5, the No. 1 Detroit Pistons hosted the No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers, while the No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder continued their championship defense at home against the No. 4 Los Angeles Lakers.
The interesting thing to note in these games is that both Detroit and Cleveland are coming off of seven-game series, so their conditioning will be tested. And while Los Angeles did eliminate the Rockets in six games, the Thunder swept the Suns and played their first game in eight days.
Here are the winners and losers from Tuesday night’s conference semifinal games between the Pistons and Cavaliers and Thunder and Lakers:
Cavaliers vs. Pistons live score
Click here for continuous score updates for Game 1 between Cleveland and Detroit.
WINNERS
Detroit gets to the line in the first quarter
The plan for the Pistons early in the game was clear: attack the paint and put Cavs defenders in compromising positions. That diminished the impact of Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, who fell into early foul trouble. And, as Detroit went on a run late in the period, those trips to the line helped extend the lead.
That’s also why even though players like Cade Cunningham (3-of-10 in the first half) and Tobias Harris (2-of-7) struggled from the floor, they were still able to contribute, with 14 and 10 first-half points, respectively.
After two quarters, the Pistons were 17-of-22 (77.3%) from the line.
Cleveland, by comparison, shot just 8 free throws, though it did convert all of them.
Pistons turn turnovers into points
The other reason Detroit launched massive runs in the first half was because it turned defense into offense. Detroit’s perimeter players smothered Cleveland’s guards, jumping passing lanes and forcing tough passes in pick-and-roll actions. The Pistons recorded six steals in the first half, but, more importantly, they scored 20 points off of those takeaways.
When teams can force their opponents into turnovers, it neutralizes the energy and pace from the opposing offense.
On the other side, Detroit didn’t commit a single turnover in the first quarter, but it got careless in the second, committing 6.
That helped the Cavs hang around, and it could be a path for Cleveland to make a comeback in the second half.
LOSERS
All Cleveland starters (except Donovan Mitchell)
Cleveland started the game cold, going 3-of-11 (27.2%) to open. And though Donovan Mitchell was effective, scoring 14 in the first half, he was the only player to reach double-figures in scoring.
Jarrett Allen — after his 22-point, 19-rebound Game 7 performance — didn’t score a single point in the first half and played just 5:58 because of foul trouble. Dean Wade took just one shot and didn’t record a single point, either. Evan Mobley and James Harden picked it up some in the second quarter, but they combined the shoot just 5-of-13 in the first half.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cavaliers vs Pistons, Lakers vs Thunder: Winners, losers in NBA today
