Inside the Cavs' 23-0 3rd-quarter run that set an all-time franchise record
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The Cleveland Cavaliers left the halftime locker room facing a four-point deficit to the Detroit Pistons on Monday night.
By the time the Pistons scored again, the Cavs led by 19 points.
That's right -- they went on a 23-0 run to start the third quarter.
It's the biggest shutout run Cleveland has ever had in the playoffs:
Cavs just went on a 23-0 run, their biggest scoring run in the playoffs in the play-by-play era.
— Keerthika Uthayakumar (@keerthikau) May 12, 2026
The run was led by Donovan Mitchell, but all the Cavs were hooping.
And clearly, it wasn't just offense. They were crushing the Pistons at both ends of the floor.
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How Cavs went on 23-0 run
The run started in unassuming fashion, when Mitchell dropped in a little floater to start waking up from his messy first half.
Mitchell made another floater to tie it 56-56, and that was an and-1 -- he made the free throw, too.
The incumbent star was going now, and he soon drilled a 3-pointer.
James Harden then assisted to Jarrett Allen for a 62-56 lead, but the Cavs were just getting started.
A block by Evan Mobley set up another Mitchell 3, and then the next time down, it was Harden for 3 and a 68-56 lead.
The Pistons used their second timeout of the quarter then, but there was more to come.
Mitchell hit a long stepback 2, his foot barely on the line.
Allen dunked to go up 73-56, then Mitchell scored one more time.
The Pistons finally stopped the run when Paul Reed scored.
Before that, the Cavs had scored 23 points in five minutes and 46 seconds.
Mitchell ended up scoring 21 points in the third quarter, tying a Kyrie Irving franchise record for playoff scoring in a quarter.
The Pistons won the first quarter 24-21, then the second 32-31.
The Cavs won the third, 38-21.
Cleveland was rocking as the Cavs went on the biggest run of their season.