DETROIT -- Tension began to build at Little Caesars Arena when Paolo Banchero knocked down a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer that made Game 5 between the Detroit Pistons and Orlando Magic a three-point game with just over a minute to go Wednesday night.
After leading by as many as 15 points earlier in the fourth quarter, the Pistons' season was on the line and the Magic were inching closer to eliminating them thanks to 45 points from Banchero.
But Cade Cunningham drove on the right side of the floor and got Desmond Bane sliding backward as he stopped and popped a 16-foot fadeaway with 32 seconds left. Cunningham's basket put the finishing touches on his own 45-point, franchise-record night and kept top-seeded Detroit's season alive with a 116-109 victory.
If Game 4 was a defensive slugfest won by the Magic in Orlando, Florida, Game 5 will be remembered as a classic playoff duel between two of the best young offensive talents in the game. Cunningham and Banchero became just the second set of players with dueling 45-point performances in NBA playoff history, joining Donovan Mitchell (51 points) and Jamal Murray (50 points), who dueled in Game 4 of the 2020 first round between the Jazz and Nuggets in the NBA COVID-19 bubble.
"That's what's up," Cunningham said when told about him and Banchero joining Murray and Mitchell as the only other two to score that many points in a playoff game against each other. "I'm sure it was a great game. Hope the fans enjoy it, but it was a great win for us.
"... Not everybody is blessed with those types of opportunities to have pressure and things on the line like that. A lot of times I feel undeserving of how great of moments I get to be a part of. Just try to make the most of it."
Cunningham edged Dave Bing (44 points in 1968) for most points scored in a playoff game for the Pistons. Detroit needed each one Wednesday because the Magic battled to keep it close despite not having Franz Wagner, who missed Game 5 because of a right calf strain. (His status for Game 6 and a potential Game 7 remains uncertain.)
Without Wagner, Banchero said he knew he had to step it up, and he did, making 17 of 31 shots, including six 3-pointers. But he also missed 7 of 12 from the free-throw line, and the No. 8-seeded Magic missed a total of 14 from the stripe.
Banchero, though, did all he could to keep this game close, scoring 18 of his points and hitting 4 of 6 triples in the fourth when the Pistons led by as many as 15 early in the quarter.
"In the heat of the moment, you're not really thinking about it," Banchero said of his duel with Cunningham. "You're just thinking about getting the win. But sure, one day [I'll] look back and be like, 'That was a hell of a game.' But me and him have been going at it since AAU days. So no surprise there that happened."
Cunningham set the tone for Detroit when he scored 20 points in the second quarter. Without Wagner to harass him defensively, Cunningham seemed to be able to get whatever shots he wanted and get to the line, where he made 14-of-14.
With Wagner as the primary defender on him in the first four games of the series, Cunningham scored a total of 17 points, shot 6-for-24 from the field, including just 3-of-16 from behind the arc, and had six turnovers, according to ESPN's tracking.
For the Pistons, however, this was more about playing more like themselves and coming out with the necessary aggression, hunger, effort and physicality.
"We come out swinging, we come out kicking, we come out scratching, biting, clawing, whatever's necessary to get it done," Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. "And that spirit carries over. And the want to not let your teammate down carries over."
Now the Pistons go back to Orlando trying to force a Game 7. Bickerstaff said this looked a lot more like the Pistons team that won 60 games during the regular season and earned the East's top seed. Ausar Thompson had 15 rebounds and five steals. Jalen Duren nearly had a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds. And Tobias Harris scored 23 points and had eight rebounds.
Bickerstaff was asked if it feels like the Pistons have some life again.
"Man, I feel like we've always had life," he said. "Until that fat lady starts singing, we got life."