Cunningham’s 45 points tie Banchero in historic duel as Pistons force Game 6

Key facts

• Cade Cunningham scored 45 points, a Pistons single-game playoff record, surpassing Dave Bing’s 1968 mark.
• Paolo Banchero also scored 45 points for the Magic, matching his playoff career high.
• Detroit led by 17 in the first half and never trailed, but Orlando cut the lead to three with 1:09 left.
• Cunningham shot 13-of-23 from the field, 5-of-8 on threes, and 14-of-14 from the free-throw line.
• Banchero missed 7 of 12 free throws; Orlando shot 16-of-30 from the line overall.
• The Pistons out-rebounded the Magic by 16 and shot nearly 50% from the field.
• Game 6 is Friday night in Orlando; the Magic lead the series 3-2.
• Only 13 teams in NBA history have overcome a 3-1 deficit; Detroit did it in 2003 against Orlando.

Historic duel in Detroit

Cade Cunningham and Paolo Banchero traded 45-point performances on Wednesday night, but it was Cunningham’s step-back jumper with 32 seconds left that sealed a 116-109 win for the Detroit Pistons, staving off elimination in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series. The victory cut Orlando’s series lead to 3-2 and forced a Game 6 on Friday in Florida. Cunningham’s 45 points set a new Pistons single-game playoff record, surpassing the 44 points Dave Bing scored in 1968. The former No. 1 overall pick shot 13-of-23 from the field, made a playoff career-high five 3-pointers, and was perfect from the free-throw line, going 14-for-14. Banchero matched him point for point, also scoring 45 on 17-of-31 shooting, including six 3-pointers, but missed 7 of 12 free throws.

Detroit’s early surge and Orlando’s resilience

The Pistons came out firing, leading by 12 after the first quarter and building a 17-point lead in the second. Cunningham scored 27 points in the first half, the most by a Pistons player in a postseason half in the play-by-play era, including 20 in the second quarter alone. Detroit put up 66 points before halftime. Orlando responded with a 7-0 run to close the half, cutting the deficit to two possessions. The Magic kept pressing after the break, pulling within two points early in the third quarter, but Cunningham added 10 points in the period to push Detroit’s lead back to double digits entering the fourth.

Banchero’s fourth-quarter rally falls short

Banchero kept Orlando alive in the final period, scoring 18 points and drilling a contested 3-pointer with 1:09 left to bring the Magic within three. But Cunningham answered with a fadeaway jumper on the ensuing possession, and the Pistons held on for the seven-point win. Tobias Harris contributed 23 points and eight rebounds for Detroit, while Jalen Duren and Duncan Robinson each added 12. For Orlando, Anthony Black scored 19 off the bench, and Desmond Bane had 18. The Magic’s poor free-throw shooting – 16-of-30 – proved costly, leaving points off the board in a tight game.

A series on the brink of history

Orlando entered the night aiming to become the seventh No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in NBA history. Instead, the Magic fell to 0-10 all-time on the road in Game 5s. The Pistons, meanwhile, are hoping to replicate their 2003 comeback, when they rallied from a 3-1 deficit against the same Magic franchise – the first of seven such comebacks this century. Only 13 teams in NBA playoff history have overcome a 3-1 series deficit. The Denver Nuggets were the last to do it, in 2020, becoming the first franchise to accomplish the feat twice in one postseason.

Injury concern for Orlando

Magic forward Franz Wagner missed Game 5 with a strained right calf, an injury that forced him out late in the third quarter of Game 4. Wagner had averaged nearly 17 points and 5.5 rebounds over the first four games of the series. His absence was felt as Orlando struggled to find consistent scoring outside Banchero. Detroit’s defense also stepped up, holding the Magic to 109 points despite Banchero’s explosion. The Pistons out-rebounded Orlando by 16 and forced 12 turnovers, turning them into 18 points.

What’s next: Game 6 in Orlando

The series shifts back to Florida for Game 6 on Friday night, where the Magic will have a second chance to close out the series on their home court. Orlando has a clear advantage, but Detroit has momentum after a historic performance from Cunningham. Cunningham’s fifth straight playoff game with at least 25 points set another franchise mark, and the Pistons have shown they can compete with the top-seeded Magic. However, no team has ever come back from a 3-1 deficit in this series, and Orlando will look to avoid becoming the eighth team to blow such a lead.

The bottom line

• Cunningham’s 45 points are a Pistons playoff record, surpassing Dave Bing’s 1968 mark.
• Banchero matched Cunningham with 45 points but missed 7 of 12 free throws, contributing to Orlando’s loss.
• Detroit never trailed and led by as many as 17, but Orlando cut the lead to three in the fourth quarter.
• The Pistons out-rebounded the Magic by 16 and shot nearly 50% from the field.
• Orlando fell to 0-10 all-time on the road in Game 5s.
• Game 6 is Friday in Orlando; the Magic lead the series 3-2 and can close out at home.