Here we are, with yet another episode of officiating taking center stage. The Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons battled all night in a thriller that came down to the final seconds. Cade Cunningham and his team were moments away from securing home-court advantage in the series, but a controversial no-call changed everything. And instead of walking away with the win, Detroit now finds itself staring at elimination despite winning the first two games. Even though the Pistons haven’t been consistent in both playoff series, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff once again voiced his frustration with the officiating.

Detroit came into this game with a damage-control mindset after dropping Games 3 and 4. Ausar Thompson turned out to be the x-factor for the Pistons last night with some incredible defense on Donovan Mitchell and James Harden. And with the scores even in the last 24 seconds of the fourth quarter, Detroit trusted Thompson to get a stop on Mitchell, and in reality, he did not disappoint. In fact, he even secured the ball, after which Jarrett Allen made a play that turned out to be the biggest talking point from the game. The icing on the cake was the referee’s subsequent no-call and the baffling pool report.

“He [Jarrett Allen] fouled Ausar, it’s clear,” said Bickerstaff after the game. “He trips him when he’s going for a loose ball.” The Pistons coach was visibly frustrated, believing his team had earned the chance to close the game out at the free-throw line. Detroit had perfectly executed its defense in the biggest moment of the night, only for the ending to be overshadowed by the officiating controversy. Here’s exactly what happened.

Allen tripped Thompson to the ground by first stepping on Thompson’s foot and then tripping over his other leg. While the entire arena waited for a whistle, the referees decided to let the clock run out and send the game to overtime… Bickerstaff was furious and stormed onto the court, arguing with the refs to get two free throws. But nothing changed. “Believe that’s a foul that should have been called on that trip [by Allen] on Ausar Thompson,” said ESPN’s Tim Legler.

Legler commented after reviewing the slow-motion replay, and he appeared convinced it warranted a foul call. His breakdown only added fuel to the growing frustration surrounding the sequence, especially given the circumstances late in the game. At that point, both teams were already in the bonus, meaning any foul would have sent Detroit to the free-throw line. That would have allowed Thompson to put the Pistons ahead with less than a second remaining. Thompson had made two free throws during the game, both in the fourth quarter, and Detroit likely would’ve needed just one conversion to escape with the win.

Ultimately, the Pistons fell 117-113 in overtime. James Harden delivered his first 30-point playoff performance for the Cavaliers and helped them take a commanding 3-2 lead in the series. Detroit had a few opportunities to regain control in overtime, but Cunningham and Co. were unable to recover from the momentum swing created by the controversial ending to regulation. Once the final whistle sounded, everybody waited for only one thing. The pool report.

Crew Chief Tony Brothers was assigned to last night’s game. When asked about why there wasn’t a foul called on Allen, he wrote, “During live play, both players were going for the ball and there was incidental contact with the legs with no player having possession of the ball.” When probed further about the no-call, Brothers reiterated the “incidental contact” part again. But he did drop this tidbit of information: “The play will be reviewed by the league office tomorrow and it will be posted in the L2M.” While the league’s Last Two Minute Report may provide further clarification, it will do little to change the result for Detroit.

Now, in case you’re wondering what the league classifies as “incidental,” here’s the definition. “The mere fact that contact occurs does not necessarily constitute a foul,” according to the official NBA rulebook. “Contact which is incidental to an effort by a player to play an opponent, reach a loose ball, or perform normal defensive or offensive movements, should not be considered illegal. If, however, a player attempts to play an opponent from a position where he has no reasonable chance to perform without making contact with his opponent, the responsibility is on the player in this position.”

Cade Cunningham also shared his frustration over the no-call after the game. “We all saw the play. I think it was pretty clear that it was a foul. He has the ball in his possession, he is running forward, he is tripped up… Nobody wants to make that call, I guess.” Despite the disappointment, though, Bickerstaff made it clear that his team has no intention of backing down. “You’re going to have to choke the life out of this team, we are not going to go down without a fight,” the coach said. Something that’s remained a consistent factor, however, is Bickerstaff’s complaints with the officiating.

In Game 4, Detroit made it to the charity stripe only 12 times, almost the same as Mitchell alone had in just the fourth quarter! On the other hand, Cleveland got 34 free throws. It led the Pistons coach to make a bold statement to the media: “Ever since we came to Cleveland, the whistle has changed.” The case wasn’t any different last night: the Cavaliers got to shoot 38 free throws, while the Pistons went 18 of 20…

The Pistons have been here before. They were down 3-1 to the Orlando Magic in the first round of the playoffs this season. However, when clear foul calls are missed at crucial moments, it kills the team’s momentum. The loss will be a difficult one for the Pistons to forget, especially with Game 6 shifting back to Cleveland. Still, Detroit has responded to adversity before, and the team now faces one final opportunity to keep its season alive.

Whether the series returns for a Game 7 remains to be seen, but the controversy surrounding Game 5 is unlikely to fade anytime soon.