Cavs: 5 things we learned from the double over time win against the Pistons

The Cavs won 128-119 against the Pistons on Saturday night, in a game that saw Cleveland come back in the fourth quarter and a first overtime period.

The Cleveland Cavaliers won their second game of the year, moving to 2-0. The Cavs knocked off the Pistons 128-119 in two-overtime periods behind the stellar shooting of Collin Sexton and Darius Garland. Both men scored 20+ points, but Garland also added 12 assists, a career-high.

Cedi Osman was the other big story of the game, dropping 22 points off the bench, behind a stellar game shooting. Rookie Isaac Okoro was a non-factor offensively, going 0-for-4 from the floor and 0-for-3 from the three-point line. Despite that, Okoro played well defensively, helping cause some big turnovers and holding several key Pistons to a rough day.

The Pistons were carried by Blake Griffin and Jerami Grant’s big day but their guards were largely ineffective against a blitzing Cavs attack.

These are just five things we learned from the double OT win

This team loves the mid-range jumper in the paint

Collin Sexton and Darius Garland really like taking jumpers at the top of the key. That’s not a knock, it works. It’ll be interesting to see how that works against teams with better backcourts and stronger defenses.

Andre Drummond is very good on defense

Several times in the fourth quarter and overtime, Andre Drummond had a big, game-changing play. Not just in the paint either, twice he went one-on-one with Derrick Rose and beat him. If the Cavs can become a winning team this year Drummond will be able to show the NBA how good he is defensively.

Kevin Love struggled in his return to the lineup

While Kevin Love did well from the free-throw line, he had a rough return to the lineup. Love hadn’t played in the preseason and missed the first game of the season. He scored 15 points, going 4-5 from the free-throw line, but just 4-of-12 from the floor and 3-of-8 from three-point.

Cedi Osman can deliver when given chances

We’ve been seeing glimpses and while some are “shocked” that a 24-year-old can still “improve”, the truth is if you’ve been watching him, you know he can do this. He just hasn’t always had the opportunities to. Cedi Osman went 7-of-12 for 22 points and shot 57% from the three-point line.

Darius Garland and Collin Sexton can score against bad backcourts

The backcourts for the Detroit Pistons and Charlotte Hornets are not very good defensively, so seeing Darius Garland and Collin Sexton go off on them isn’t surprising. Hopefully, this stellar play continues as the Cavs play tougher teams.