Pistons complete comeback to set up Cleveland semi-final

Washington: The Detroit Pistons beat the Orlando Magic 116-94 on Sunday, completing a recovery from 3-1 down in their NBA playoff series and advancing to an Eastern Conference semi-final against Cleveland.

Cade Cunningham led Detroit with 32 points and 12 assists, while Tobias Harris contributed 30 points and nine rebounds as the Pistons sealed a 4-3 series victory. According to the match report, Detroit had fallen behind 3-1 in the best-of-seven contest before winning the final three games.

The result gave the Pistons their first playoff series win since 2008. Detroit, which secured the top seed in the Eastern Conference with the third-best record in the league, also became the 15th team in NBA history to overturn a 3-1 deficit. The comeback came a day after the Philadelphia 76ers achieved the same feat against Boston.

After the win, Cunningham said, "It's great. We had a great regular season, we built a lot of momentum going into these playoffs. To lose in the first round would have really stung. To come back from 3-1, odds against us, and to come back and win it at home -- it feels good."

Detroit had already stayed alive by winning games five and six against Orlando, including overcoming a 24-point deficit on Friday to force the deciding seventh game. It was also the second time the Pistons had rallied from 3-1 down to eliminate the Magic, having done so in the first round in 2003.

Cunningham said Orlando had tested his side throughout the series, adding,

They really pushed us to the limit. We've grown a lot because of this series, because of that team.

Paolo Banchero scored 38 points, along with nine rebounds and six assists, for Orlando. He accounted for the Magic's first 11 points, and Orlando held a two-point edge at the end of the opening quarter.

The contest remained close early in the second period before Detroit pulled away, helped by a 17-point second quarter from Harris. The Pistons took a 60-49 lead into halftime and later stretched the margin to 25 points. They also capitalised on 16 Orlando turnovers, which produced 19 points for Detroit.

Looking ahead, Cunningham said, "We're excited for what's to come. We want to win games, win series and (our) ultimate goal is a championship."

Detroit will now open its series against Cleveland in game one on Tuesday.

In Cleveland, the Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors 114-102 to also clinch their series 4-3. The home team won every game in that series.

Jarrett Allen starred for Cleveland with 22 points, 19 rebounds, two steals and three blocked shots. The Cavaliers recorded their fifth straight game-seven victory and beat the Raptors for the fourth time in four post-season meetings.

Cleveland recovered after trailing by 10 points early and went into the break level at 49-49. The Cavaliers then opened the third quarter with a 9-0 run and outscored Toronto 38-19 in the period. Allen scored 14 of his 22 points and grabbed 10 of his 19 rebounds in the third quarter alone.

Allen said, "I just wanted to show my teammates that we can win this game."

His work on the boards helped Cleveland dominate the rebounding count 60-33. Allen added, "Energy and effort, that's what I believe wins games. If you do it on the defensive end, everything translates to the offense. Every single possession, it means a lot. Every single possession means it could be the end of the season."

Donovan Mitchell added 22 points for Cleveland, while veteran James Harden scored 18. Mitchell also came through an energetic chase for the ball early in the third quarter that sent him into the third row of seats at Rocket Arena without injury.

For Toronto, Scottie Barnes scored a game-high 24 points. However, the Raptors' second-half response was affected when foul trouble forced him to spend extended time on the bench.