LeBron James' Los Angeles Lakers lost at home to the Houston Rockets, who continue their comeback, and a huge performance from Cade Cunningham allowed the Pistons to remain in contention Wednesday in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

The Lakers miss their chance

The Los Angeles Lakers lost 99-93 at home to the Houston Rockets, missing the opportunity to qualify for the second round in front of their fans.

After leading the series 3-0, the Lakers lost in Houston on Monday and then at home on Wednesday and now only lead 3-2 against the Rockets, who will host Game 6 on Friday.

The pressure is starting to mount on the Californians, as no NBA franchise has ever managed to overturn a series that started with a 3-0 lead.

Still without Luka Doncic, the Lakers were able to count on the return of Austin Reaves (22 points), who had been absent since the beginning of the month due to an oblique injury.

After taking an 11-point lead early in the game, the home team saw Jabari Smith Jr.'s Rockets (22 points) take a 13-point lead in the 4th quarter, without Kevin Durant, who was once again unavailable (left ankle).

A basket by LeBron James (25 points, 7 assists) brought the Lakers within three points with 3 minutes left on the clock, but the "King" then lost a crucial ball to Reed Sheppard and then missed the last chance basket from long range (0 for 6 from beyond the arc in the game) with 12 seconds left on the buzzer.

Cunningham vs Banchero, duel at high altitude

Cade Cunningham for the Pistons and Paolo Banchero for the Magic both scored 45 points in an intense duel that went in favor of Detroit (116-109).

For only the second time in the playoffs, two opponents have scored at least 45 points each, after Donovan Mitchell and Jamal Murray in 2020.

The Pistons, on the brink of elimination despite having the best record in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, thus reduce the gap to 3-2 in favor of Orlando in this best-of-seven series before Game 6 on Friday in Florida.

"We have fighters on the team, we were able to give our best when we had our backs against the wall," Cunningham told Prime Video, after breaking the Michigan franchise's playoff scoring record (13 of 23 shooting).

Paolo Banchero was also immense for the Magic with 45 points (17 of 31), 9 rebounds and 7 assists.

While the Pistons were controlling the game, Banchero brought his team back to within six points with 3:23 left on the clock, then to three points with 1:12 left, before a final mid-range response from Cunningham behind the last of the Pistons' 16 precious offensive rebounds.

Cleveland maintains control against Toronto

After two away losses, the Cleveland Cavaliers won at home 125-120 against the Toronto Raptors and thus lead 3-2 while maintaining home-court advantage.

RJ Barrett's Raptors (25 points, 12 rebounds) had taken a 12-point lead after the break but were overturned between the end of the 3rd and the beginning of the 4th quarter by James Harden (23 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists), Evan Mobley (23 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks) and their teammates.

Game 6 will take place on Friday in Canada.

AFP