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The Pistons came out engaged once again. They were hanging tough with the Cavaliers just like Game 1. The Pistons took a 28-23 lead after the 1st quarter, and it felt like they might be able to pull off a huge win. Alas, that was not the case, as the Cavaliers would use a strong second half to win 107-90.
The story of Game 1 for the Pistons was their three-point shooting. They shot 15-29 in Game 1 by taking advantage of the Cavaliers selling out on the Andre Drummond-Reggie Jackson pick and roll. In this game, Andre and Reggie took over and really did some damage to the Cavaliers early. Andre Drummond had 15 points at halftime, and the Cavaliers really had no answer for him except to resort to Hack-a-Dre. Reggie Jackson had 12 points.
Down 55-53 at the half, the Pistons came out in the second half with a 7-0 start to take a 60-55. After a Cavs timeout, the wheels came off. Cleveland went on a 21-4 run and put the game out of reach for the Pistons for good.
The Cavaliers cruised to their 107-98 victory, tying an NBA record for threes in the process (20). The Pistons did not continue their hot 3-point shooting from the first game, finishing just 4-15.
The story of Game 1 for the Cavs was Kevin Love at the 5 and how the Pistons couldn't stop him. He was contained for the most part, only scoring 17 on 5-14 shooting. Mission accomplished, right? Not quite, as the Pistons forgot to guard the 3-point line entirely, leading to the Cavaliers shooting 20-38. That includes 7-13 out of JR Smith and 4-7 from Kyrie Irving.
Andre Drummond finished with 20 points for the Pistons and had a pretty good game on offense. However, he was 4-16 from the free throw line. That is embarrassing. Reggie Jackson had a strong first half, but only finished with two points in the second half. Marcus Morris and Tobias Harris were terrible. They combined to shoot 5-21.
LeBron James finished with 27 for the Cavaliers. JR Smith finished with 21 points, and Kyrie Irving had 22.
Hopefully the Pistons are able to bounce back in their first playoff game at The Palace since 2009. It should be a full, energetic crowd, that can hopefully help the Pistons pull out a win and avoid the sweep.