Cleveland leads the series 3-0 with a chance to finish it Sunday at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

The 68 points scored by Detroit tied the franchise record for fewest points in a playoff game.

quot;Detroit, nor ourselves, thought we played our best Basketball,quot; Cleveland coach Mike Brown said. quot;But somehow, someway, especially in the fourth quarter defensively, we found a way.quot;

That quot;wayquot; was led by LeBron James, who almost had a triple-double with 25 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists.

quot;He made plays,quot; Pistons coach Michael Curry said. quot;Big-time players make plays and that is what he did.quot;

But on Friday night, James had some help.

However, it wasn't the reliable Cleveland backcourt of Mo Williams and Delonte West, who had a brutal shooting night as they missed 17 of their 18 combined shots.

Instead, it was former Piston Joe Smith picking up the slack by scoring a playoff career-high 19 points to go with 10 rebounds.

quot;Joe Smith was terrific for us,quot; Brown said. quot;Joe came off the bench and he impacted the game, especially at the right time.quot;

Cleveland's offense sputtered near the end of the third quarter, which ended with a 53-all tie.

Jump-starting the Cavs offense in the fourth was Smith, who made an impact from the perimeter, as well as from inside the lane.

The 6-foot-10 forward nailed a 3-pointer that put the Cavs ahead, 61-58. He then added a layup which gave the Cavs a comfortable 63-58 lead.

Detroit never got closer than that for the rest of the game.

quot;I've been around a while,quot; said Smith. quot;So I kind of know what it takes to win.quot;

The same was thought of the Pistons, although you wouldn't know it by the way they've played in this series.

quot;This is killing me,quot; said Hamilton, who had 15 points. quot;For the simple fact, how great you was and being down 0-3, being an eighth seed, and then watching them celebrate after shot after shot. It's a terrible situation. You just hope to come back next game and get a win.quot;

Detroit will need to bring a similar fight Sunday if they are to have any chance of extending this series back to Cleveland for a Game 5 matchup.

quot;Right now, we have to have a focus that is a game-winner, every possession,quot; Detroit guard Arron Afflalo said. quot;Just looking at a lot of the teams in history that are good teams, they played with a certain intensity, a certain focus, and a certain energy level, every possession. And being down 3-0, that's what it's come down to.quot;