The Detroit Pistons’ incredible season came to a crashing end Sunday night, suffering a devastating 125-94 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 7 at Little Caesars Arena.
Despite entering the playoffs as the Eastern Conference’s top seed, Detroit never recovered after falling behind early and eventually bowed out with a 31-point defeat, one of the worst Game Seven losses ever suffered by a 60-win team.
Cade Cunningham struggled to find his rhythm in the biggest game of the season, finishing with just 13 points on 5-for-16 shooting while missing all seven of his three-point attempts.
His night came to an early end with under six minutes remaining as fans headed for the exits.
“That game sucked,” Cunningham said afterward, via ESPN. “Being back home, definitely wanted to get this win for the fans. It reminded me of last year, losing on the home court.
“It’s not a great feeling. I hadn’t been thinking about the offseason so my mind’s been racing now, trying to figure out what I’ve got to do and what it’s going to look like. That’s really it.”
Detroit trailed by 17 at halftime and never seriously threatened Cleveland after that.
The Pistons also managed only 34 points in the paint, tying their lowest total in any game this season.
Still, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff refused to let the ugly finish define what his group accomplished throughout the year.
“It’s not a disappointment at all. And not ever will I be disappointed in these guys,” Bickerstaff said. “These guys, every single day gave us what they got. So, it is not a disappointment. It’s a loss and it’s a tough loss, but that adjective will never be used with this group.” according to ESPN’s Jamal Collier.
The Pistons had shown resilience throughout the postseason, winning four straight elimination games before finally running out of answers against Cleveland. Cunningham made it clear the team still believes this season established something important for the future.
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