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The Detroit Pistons and Cleveland Cavaliers had to deal with a very noisy upset during the Pistons’ 122-119 overtime victory Friday at Little Caesars Arena.
During a timeout, with the Pistons up 65-64, the horn sounded to signal for the teams to return to play. The problem was that the horn blew for 13 minutes straight, causing the game to be delayed.
The horn’s continuous sound occurred after a power surge caused the overhead scoreboard to malfunction. The horn finally stopped as the arena staff shut down the overhead scoreboard and the crowd cheered.
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Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (left) talks with teammate James Harden during a timeout against the Detroit Pistons in the second half at Little Caesars Arena. Neither played in the Cavaliers’ overtime loss to the Pistons in Detroit, Michigan on February 27, 2026. (Lon Horwedel/Imagn Images)
While the horn was malfunctioning, the scoreboard and clock above the baskets were reset. After 18 minutes the game was resumed. The scoring crew used a manual air horn when play resumed and the overhead scoreboard was black.
The officials brought Pistons coach JB Bickerstaff and Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson to midcourt for a brief discussion before announcing that the game would resume without the main scoreboard. But moments after the game resumed, the scoreboard came back on.
Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson argues with an official during the first half of their game against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan on February 27, 2026. (Lon Horwedel/Imagn Images)
Due to the delay and overtime, the match lasted 3 hours and 22 minutes.
Cleveland – which will host Detroit on Tuesday night – led by nine points with 2:44 left in regulation and Cade Cunningham fouled out with 1:56 left. But the Pistons outscored the Cavaliers 16-7 to force overtime.
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Detroit Pistons head coach JB Bickerstaff shouts directions to his team during the second half of an NBA game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Detroit, Michigan on February 27, 2026. (Duane Burleson/AP Photo)
Cade Cunningham had 25 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists for East-leading Detroit before fouling out. Jalen Duren had 33 points and 16 rebounds for the Pistons in the win.
Jarrett Allen had 25 points and nine rebounds for Cleveland, which played its second straight game without James Harden (thumb) and Donovan Mitchell (groin). Evan Mobley had 23 points and 12 rebounds and Sam Merrill added 20 points.
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