CLEVELAND, OHIO — Jarrett Allen thought his guards set the tone.

When told during Wednesday morning’s pregame shootaround that Donovan Mitchell said the Cavs go as Allen and Evan Mobley go, Allen raised an eyebrow.

“I thought it was the opposite,” Allen said.

During Wednesday’s 113-85 win over the Pistons, however, Allen and Mobley proved Mitchell correct. Cleveland’s front-court duo combined for 39 points and 22 rebounds while Mitchell and Darius Garland, who missed the game with injuries, watched from the bench in hoodies and sweats.

That’s 34.5% of Cleveland’s scoring total while enveloping most of Detroit’s forays to the rim.

Remind us again, Allen. Who sets the tone?

He and Mobley wasted no time answering that question during a 32-14 first quarter against the Pistons, whose young front line looked overmatched against Cleveland’s inside. Detroit believes rookie Jalen Duren will one day be a fine NBA rim protector. But Duren provided little early resistance against Allen, who bullied his way to 14 points and nine rebounds before halftime. Same goes for third-year pro Isaiah Stewart, the primary victim of Mobley’s 13-point first half.

The Cavs also got good production from their secondary playmakers without their two highest usage player — Garland and Mitchell each boast a usage rates over 27%. Caris LeVert recorded five assists. Isaac Okoro tied a season-high with five, and reserve guard Raul Neto set a new season high with eight assists in a season-high 33 minutes.

That’s not to say that Cleveland’s offense didn’t sputter at times. During one third-quarter stretch, the Cavs missed 10 of 15 shots and let the Pistons cut a once 18-point lead to two. And Cleveland shot just 6 of 25 from 3-point range all night.

But they still created enough offense, and the defense made scoring miserable for Detroit, which shot 37% from the field and produced the 18th sub-100-point game by a Cavs opponent this season. And they still found a winning formula without their stars.

The Cavs announced before the game that Garland (thumb soreness) and Mitchell (groin soreness) would not play against Detroit. Garland missed five games earlier this season with an eye injury. Mitchell has been dealing with a tender groin since he injured it during Cleveland’s 113-103 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 18).

Bickerstaff said before the Pistons game that Mitchell was “working his way back” to usual form.

“That injury is a tough one to deal with because it limits you in so many ways – the side-to-side stuff, the straight, full-speed sprints — you have to try to manage all those things,” Bickerstaff said. “And when it’s bothering you, now you’re thinking about it all the time. There’s a loose ball in front of you or a move that you typically make, now that’s on your mind. I think he’s working his way through that and getting closer to 100 percent.”

The Cavs will need Mitchell and Garland to make a playoff run, but stealing games like Wednesday’s are important during the long slog of a season. The Pistons, missing star second-year forward Cade Cunningham for the season, are barreling down the standings in a race for presumptive top 2023 draft pick Victor Wembanyama. They entered the season with the league’s fifth-youngest roster (24 years old on average).

But the Cavs (25.9 years) aren’t far behind, and they proved a point Bickerstaff made before Wednesday’s game. Whether the buck starts with Cleveland’s guards or its big men, the Cavs are deep enough to morph their winning methods. That’ll matter during the playoffs, too.

“You go all the way back to the beginning (of the season), we talked about the strength of our team being our team,” Bickerstaff said. “I think the more balanced we are, the tougher we’re going to be to deal with. Because now it’s not just, hey, stop this one guy. Now it’s all these guys can make you pay. That makes it hard for defenses to slow everybody down.”