Cavs advance to Eastern Conference Finals
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Photo: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images
The Cleveland Cavaliers are Eastern Conference Finalists for the first time since 2018.
State of play: Brutalized and left for dead at Rocket Arena in Game 6, Donovan Mitchell and the Cavs came storming back against the Pistons, winning Game 7 Sunday night in decisive fashion (125-94) to take the series 4-3.
The intrigue: After exhausting back-to-back seven-game series, the Cavs now travel to New York to take on a Knicks team that hasn't played since May 10.
Between the lines: Mitchell has never advanced to the conference finals and played selfish, inefficient basketball through much of the Detroit series.
- But he silenced his critics Sunday, scoring 26 points and dishing out 8 assists in his most dominant all-around performance of this postseason.
By the numbers: Big men Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley scored more than 20 points apiece, while producing an array of highlight-reel blocks and dunks.
- Sam Merrill led all bench scorers with 23 points, shooting 5-8 from behind the three-point line.
Zoom in: Cavs owner Dan Gilbert bused an armada of Cleveland fans to Little Caesars Arena, and their cheers could be heard on the national telecast.
- Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne was among them.
🎙️ What they're saying: Amazon Prime play-by-play announcer Ian Eagle coined a couple of instant-classic calls:
- "A Spida bite at the end of the quarter!" he announced, to commemorate a Mitchell buzzer beater.
- "As the Fro flies!" he exclaimed after a high-flying Allen dunk.
💭 Sam's thought bubble: I was at Game 6 Friday and left Rocket Arena utterly demoralized. I assumed I was watching the end of an era of Cavaliers basketball.
- Sunday, I saw a team transformed — electrifying on both ends of the floor.
- After the stifling defenses of Toronto and Detroit, New York may actually seem like a walk in the park.
What's next: The Eastern Conference Finals begins Tuesday evening at Madison Square Garden.