The Detroit Pistons dethroned the Cleveland Cavaliers 111-101 in Game 1 of their second-round series on Tuesday night.
Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 23 points, Tobias Harris had 20, and Duncan Robinson added 19 points.
The top-seeded Detroit ended an NBA record-tying 12-game postseason losing streak against a single opponent, a drought that dated to the 2007 Eastern Conference finals.
On the other hand, Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers with 23 points, ending his NBA-record streak of scoring 30-plus points in nine straight series.
James Harden added 22 points, and Max Strus scored 19 for the fourth-seeded Cavs, who pulled into a tie midway through the fourth.
Both teams won a Game 7, as the Pistons started strong and led 37-31 after a quarter.
The Pistons took a 59-46 lead into the second half, when the cushion was no longer comfortable.
Cleveland pulled within three-points late in the third, Pistons’ Ron Holland hit a buzzer-beating triple to end the quarter to have an edge of 83-76 lead.
The Cavaliers cut their deficit to three for the second time early in the fourth, and responded with eight straight points to restore a double-digit lead.
Jalen Duren worked on the defensive end, as he blocked Harden’s next shot and dunked on Detroit’s next three possessions.
Meanwhile, Detroit earned 60 victories and the top seed in the East just two years after losing 68 games and setting a single-season NBA record with 28 straight losses.
Game 2 is Thursday night in Detroit.
