A great game by Gilliam led Detroit to a 89-78 defeat of Cleveland. Although Cleveland certainly planned for Gilliam in their pre-game strategy, stopping him during the game turned out to be more of a challenge. "We thought we knew how to beat Detroit, but we were dead wrong," said Cleveland coach Bob. "We figured we'd try to put them out of their game plan and try to limit Gilliam's effectiveness, but it simply didn't happen - he was just too good."

Said Gilliam, "I knew I had a target on my back, and took it as a challenge. If they're going to change their game plan to stop me, it gives me that much more desire to step up and perservere. Anyway, they know what I can do now, so we'll see if they dare try this strategy again." Tune in next time.

Detroit was led by Gilliam (27 points, 2 assists), Henderson (9 points, 20 boards, 1 assists), Kay (13 points, 6 boards, 3 assists, a block). Cleveland was led by Stancil (16 points, 14 boards, 2 assists, 2 blocks), Torres (19 points, 0 assists, a steal, a block), Reid (13 points, 8 boards, 0 assists).

Detroit improve to 37-5 with this victory. They stay at #1 in the Central and remain at #1 overall in the Eastern Conference. With today's loss, Cleveland fall to 16-27 and 9-10 at home. They stay at #4 in the Central and remain at #11 overall in the Eastern Conference.

box score Detroit* roster Cleveland roster