National Basketball Association
Cleveland 126, Detroit 119
When: 7:00 PM ET, Monday, March 18, 2019
Where: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, Ohio
Officials: #5 Kane Fitzgerald, #63 Derek Richardson, #76 Natalie Sago
Attendance: 18465

Rookie guard Collin Sexton poured in 27 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with less than two minutes left, and the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the visiting Detroit Pistons 126-119 on Monday.

Cedi Osman supplied 21 points and six assists for the Cavaliers, who had seven players in double-figure points.

Brandon Knight contributed 16 points, four rebounds and five assists, while Nik Stauskas led the bench with 17 points. Jordan Clarkson added 14 points while Marquese Chriss added a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Wayne Ellington scored 25 points to lead the Pistons, while Andre Drummond had 21 points and 21 rebounds. Reggie Jackson added 15 points and four assists.

Pistons All-Star forward Blake Griffin sat out for just the third time this season. Coach Dwane Casey opted to rest Griffin on the second part of a back-to-back.

The Cavaliers were missing their best player, Kevin Love, who was sidelined by a back injury. Tristan Thompson (foot), Larry Nance Jr. (rib) and Matthew Dellavedova (concussion) also sat out.

The Pistons led by as many as 11 in the second quarter but they were up just 61-60 at halftime.

Cleveland led 73-69 five minutes into the second half after Osman hit a 3-pointer and a jumper on back-to-back possessions. Ellington made a three less than two minutes later to give Detroit a 77-75 edge.

An Ish Smith basket with under three minutes left in the quarter gave Detroit a five-point lead. Chriss then scored four points during a 6-0 Cleveland run to temporarily put his team back in front.

Detroit took an 88-87 lead into the fourth.

The Cavs scored 14 points in the first 3:33 of the quarter, capped by two Chriss free throws, to gain a 101-97 lead.

Ellington's corner 3-point shot with 6:35 remaining gave Detroit a 106-103 lead. Sexton's 3-pointer less than a minute later put the Cavs back on top, 108-106.

Detroit regained the lead but Sexton's 3-pointer with 1:54 left made it 115-114 in Cleveland's favor.

Osman and Sexton made shots from beyond the arc on the Cavs' next two possessions to stretch the lead to seven.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Detroit   Cleveland
Wayne Ellington 25 Scoring Collin Sexton 27
Andre Drummond 5 Assists Cedi Osman 6
Andre Drummond 21 Rebounds Marquese Chriss 10
Andre Drummond 3 Free Throws Made Cedi Osman 5
Andre Drummond 2 Steals Collin Sexton 2
Bruce Brown 2 Blocks Marquese Chriss 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Detroit 119 44.7 18-44 17-21 24 47 4 6 12
Cleveland 126 58.2 11-22 23-27 22 36 3 6 8
Upcoming Games
  • Cleveland will play their next game at home against Milwaukee. The Cavaliers have a W/L % of .176 after a win and .278 after a loss.
  • Detroit will play their next game on the road against Phoenix. The Pistons have a W/L % of .568 after a win and .455 after a loss.