Donovan Mitchell scores 39 in second half, sparks 24-0 run, earns Cavaliers win to even series 2-2

Donovan Mitchell scores 39 in second half, sparks 24-0 run, earns Cavaliers win to even series 2-2

There were a lot of things to note in this game: A red-hot Donovan Mitchell dropping 39 in the second half, James Harden spraying the ball all over the floor and racking up 11 assists, the way the Cavaliers attacked the Pistons' defense, getting them in rotation (and the way Detroit kept helping off good 3-point shooters for some reason), the Pistons turnovers, and much more.

But this game was decided in the 6:03 stretch at the start of the third quarter, when the Cavaliers went on a 24-0 run to take control.

Mitchell scored 21 in the third quarter on 8-of-9 shooting, and behind that, the Cavaliers went from down 4 at the half to up 18, and the game was never seriously in doubt again.

Cleveland went on to win 112-103, tying up their series with Detroit 2-2.

A critical Game 5 is in Detroit on Wednesday — Cleveland is 6-0 at home these playoffs and 0-5 on the road.

It was a tale of two halves for Mitchell, who had just four points on 1-of-8 shooting in the first half. It was Harden, with 15 points and six assists — 11 of those points coming early in the first – that kept the Cavaliers in striking distance.

Then Mitchell put on his cape and came out like Superman in the second half, scoring 39 — tying an NBA record for points in a half in the play-by-play era.
With a free throw with 27.6 left, Mitchell got to 39, tying him with Eric "Sleepy" Floyd for the honor.

Mitchell finished with 43 points, Harden had 24 points to go with his 11 dimes, and Evan Mobley added 17 for the Cavs.

It was a rough day for the Pistons starters. Cade Cunningham had 19 points on 16 shot attempts with four turnovers, scored just eight points, and scored 16 but needed 17 shots to get there.