The Cleveland Cvaliers held serve—and so did the pattern that defined this entire series.
Jarrett Allen tied his playoff career high with 22 points and grabbed 19 rebounds as the Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors, 114-102, in Game 7 on Monday to advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals. Donovan Mitchell had 22 points as well and James Harden added 18. The home team won all seven games of the series. Cleveland hosted Game 7. Cleveland won.
The Cavaliers—the No. 4 seed—will travel to Detroit for Game 1 of the second round on Wednesday. The Pistons, who beat the Orlando Magic in their own Game 7 showdown on Monday, and Cavaliers split their four regular-season meetings. Now they meet when it counts.
The Comeback That Settled It for the Cavaliers
Toronto controlled the first half. The Raptors led by as many as 10 midway through the second quarter, and Cleveland looked every bit like a team that had been pushed to its limits through six games. The Cavaliers shot just 4-for-17 from three-point range during that stretch and could not find consistent answers for what Toronto was doing defensively.
Then Harden, Max Strus, and Jaylon Tyson each connected from deep during a closing first-half burst. Down 47-38 with 2:58 remaining, Cleveland went on an 11-2 run to tie the game at 49. The Cavaliers carried that momentum straight into the third quarter—opening with nine straight points, Mitchell scoring five and Evan Mobley adding four, to flip a nine-point deficit into a lead. Over a 15-minute span bridging the second and third quarters, Cleveland outscored Toronto 49-21. By the time the run was done, a game that looked like Toronto’s had become Cleveland’s by 19 points.
Allen was the engine of that swing. He posted 14 of his 22 points and all 10 of his first-half rebounds—five of them on the offensive end—during that decisive stretch. His physicality around the glass gave Cleveland extra possessions at exactly the moment the game was turning.
Toronto’s Series to Learn From
Scottie Barnes finished with 24 points and 9 rebounds, and RJ Barrett scored 23 in a performance that reflected the kind of series Toronto had—competitive, spirited, and ultimately one game short. The Raptors were playing in their first playoffs since 2022, and they showed enough to suggest this group is on a genuine upward trajectory. They pushed the fourth-seeded Cavaliers all the way to a seventh game and led deep into that seventh game before Cleveland took over.
The home team winning every game of the series is an unusual footnote, but it is also a reminder of why home-court advantage exists. Toronto had its moments. It just never had the building.
What’s Next
Cleveland advances to face Detroit in a second-round matchup that carries the weight of a genuine rivalry. The Central Division rivals know each other well—four regular-season meetings, two wins apiece—but a playoff series is a different kind of education.
Mitchell has been Cleveland’s best player throughout, Allen gave them the interior dominance they needed when it mattered most, and Harden’s veteran steadiness in the closing stretch of Game 7 was exactly what a team needs from its third piece in a deciding game.
Detroit eliminated Orlando. Cleveland eliminated Toronto. The second round starts Wednesday.
