Detroit Pistons fans were cursing Tony Brothers’ name during Wednesday’s game.
The Cleveland Cavaliers took a 3-2 lead in their second-round series against the Pistons with a 117-113 victory in Game 5. Cleveland needed overtime to knock off Detroit at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich. and move to within one win of making the Eastern Conference Finals.
But a very controversial moment occurred at the end of regulation. Cavs star Donovan Mitchell drove into the lane with the score tied 103-103 but got the ball stripped away by Pistons forward Ausar Thompson.
With the final seconds ticking away, Thompson tracked down the loose ball but got tripped by Cleveland big man Jarrett Allen in the fight for possession. Referee Tony Brothers, who was right on top of the play, did not blow the whistle though, and time expired in regulation.
Here is the video of the play.
Jarrett Allen TRIPS Ausar Thompson RIGHT IN FRONT of Tony Brothers… no call pic.twitter.com/iWXI0DA2Dp
— BrickCenter (@BrickCenter_) May 14, 2026
The Pistons were in the bonus at the time, so a foul there would have resulted in two free throws for Thompson with about one second left on the clock. Adding insult to injury for Detroit was that they came up flat in overtime and went on to lose the game to Cleveland, pushing the Pistons to the brink of elimination.
Brothers, the crew chief for Wednesday’s game, told reporters afterwards that Allen’s trip was “incidental contact” that occurred “with no player having possession of the ball.” But fans, especially those of the Pistons, likely won’t buy that explanation from Brothers, the infamous veteran ref who has not had a very flattering postseason thus far.
