Pistons start fast, get even
Detroit’s balance offsets Miami’s stars
Friday, May 26, 2006
Larry Lage
ASSOCIATED PRESS
<!--PHOTOS--><TABLE class=phototableright align=right border=0><!-- begin large ad code --><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE align=center><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle></IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>PAUL SANCYA ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Pistons guard Chauncey Billups reacts after a score against the Heat in the third quarter. He finished with 18 points. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — The start, story line and result were different.
Tayshaun Prince had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Richard Hamilton scored 22 and the Detroit Pistons bounced back — as usual — and held on to beat the Miami Heat 92-88 last night in Game 2, evening the Eastern Conference finals.
Detroit got off to a great start after an awful one in the opener. Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade’s supporting cast was lackluster after its outstanding performance.
But the Heat still made it close with a frantic rally — scoring 17 points in the final 1:46 after trailing by 12.
"I’m going to go to that offense in the beginning of the night," Miami coach Pat Riley joked.
The conference finals rematch is now a best-of-five series, with Game 3 on Saturday in Miami.
Wade had 32 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and O’Neal was dominant with 21 points and 12 rebounds.
"I’ve got a busted lip and a black eye," Detroit center Ben Wallace said after defending O’Neal for much of the night. "But you do what you have to do."
Detroit, which led by as much as 14 points in the first half, went ahead 57-39 early in the second half on Hamilton’s layup after Chauncey Billups scored his first points on a three-pointer and a layup.
A 10-2 run pulled Miami to six points midway through the fourth quarter. Rasheed Wallace’s threepointer gave the Pistons an 81-71 lead with 2:41 left.
While thousands of fans headed home, Miami wasn’t ready to concede.
Wade’s three-pointer with 9.8 seconds left made it 90-88 after Prince was called for a five-second violation on an inbounds pass.
The Pistons sealed the win when Billups hit two free throws and Lindsey Hunter had a steal.
"When you start playing not to lose, you don’t play aggressive," Pistons coach Flip Saunders said. "You wait for the clock to keep rolling."
The Heat had won four straight road games and five in a row overall.
Billups had 18 points and eight assists, Rasheed Wallace scored 16 points and Ben Wallace added nine points and 12 rebounds.
"When we play that way as a team, we’re tough to beat," Ben Wallace said.
Miami beat Detroit 91-86 in Game 1 and snatched homecourt advantage away from the top-seeded team in the NBA playoffs. The Heat’s new-look surrounding cast came through in that win — while its superstars were in foul trouble — with Antoine Walker, Gary Payton and Jason Williams combining for 41 points.
In Game 2, that trio contributed 25 points.
"You have to have four or five guys play well," Riley said.
Miami led 11-0 in the series opener in its first game in a week, and Detroit missed its first six shots from the field playing two days after being pushed to seven games by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Game 2 provided a stark contrast, with the Pistons showing much more energy.
Detroit got off to such a good start that offensively challenged Ben Wallace was outscoring the Heat 7-6 midway through the first quarter. Prince, who tied his career playoff high, made a threepointer that capped a 13-0 run to put Detroit up 18-6.
The Pistons led 25-12 after making 56 percent of their shots from the field and limiting Miami to 25 percent. It was the Heat’s lowest scoring quarter of the playoffs, and the fewest points a team has scored against the Pistons in the first quarter this postseason.
Detroit had success in the first quarter keeping Wade out of the lane, forcing him to settle for three missed jumpers, and he had two points on free throws. He had 13 of his 25 points in the first quarter of Game 1.
Wade got closer to the basket in the second quarter and also connected from the outside, scoring 14 points. Detroit scored the last seven points of the first half to take a 48-37 lead.
HEAT 98 PISTONS 83
Wade, O’Neal stifle Pistons
Miami duo too hot for Detroit to handle
Sunday, May 28, 2006
Tim Reynolds
ASSOCIATED PRESS
<!--PHOTOS--><TABLE class=phototableright align=right border=0><!-- begin large ad code --><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE align=center><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle></IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>LUIS ALVAREZ ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Shaquille O’Neal, left, of the Miami Heat scores two of his 27 points against Rasheed Wallace of the Detroit Pistons. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
MIAMI — The 12-point lead Miami held minutes earlier was whittled to a single point, and Antonio McDyess rose for a dunk that would have given the Detroit Pistons the lead and all the momentum.
Dwyane Wade chose that moment to take over.
"Guys look at me and say, ‘It’s your time,’ " Wade said. "That’s all you need."
He blocked McDyess’ dunk try, then had a three-point play eight seconds later to end an 11-0 Detroit run. The Heat went on to beat the Pistons 98-83 last night in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals.
"Play of the game," Pistons coach Flip Saunders said.
Heck, it might have been the biggest play of Miami’s season.
Wade scored 35 points, O’Neal added 27 points and 12 rebounds, and they combined to shoot 24 of 32 from the floor for the Heat, which now is in the same situation it was in a year ago — up 2-1 over the Pistons in the Eastern finals, two wins from the franchise’s first trip to the NBA Finals.
"We took it upon ourselves, once again, to be the leaders of the team and help this team get a win," Wade said.
The Pistons thwarted those plans last year, rallying to win in seven games. If they have visions on doing that again, they’ll have to find a way to slow Wade and Shaquille O’Neal — because Miami’s superstar duo scored nearly at will in Game 3.
"That’s why they’re here," Heat coach Pat Riley said.
Chauncey Billups scored 11 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter for Detroit. Richard Hamilton added 20 points before fouling out and Rasheed Wallace had 11, but Tayshaun Prince — who averaged 20 points in the first two games of the series — had only three.
The Pistons shot only 42 percent from the floor, while Miami shot 58 percent. Plus, the Heat held huge edges in rebounding (40-27) and points in the paint (50-16).
"What it’s come down every game is whoever is most aggressive from start to finish has come away with a victory," Billups said. "That’s one thing that we’ve got to keep in mind."
Of the last 32 series that were tied at a game apiece, Game 3 winners have prevailed 24 times.
But Detroit has recovered from 2-1 deficits three times since 2003 — including last season. Game 4 is Monday night in Miami, before the series returns to suburban Detroit on Wednesday night.
"Any time you’re in a series, the team that wins the last game has momentum," Saunders said. "We have to find a way to take that momentum back."
Miami was up 12 entering the fourth but nearly gave it all away in the first four minutes of the period.
Detroit opened with an 11-0 run; McDyess had a layup and a free throw, Rasheed Wallace hit a jumper and — after O’Neal and Wade both missed a pair of free throws 35 seconds apart — Billups hit back-to-back threepointers, getting the Pistons to 74-73 with 7:44 left.
"All for naught," Billups said.
O’Neal said such a run would have doomed the Heat earlier this season. Not anymore, especially not now, six wins from an NBA title.
"Now we can sit back, curse each other out a little, and turn it on," O’Neal said.
After Wade’s block and threepoint play, O’Neal spun away from Ben Wallace for a jump hook 25 seconds later, pushing the lead back to six. With his team trailing by eight, Saunders went to the Hack-a-Shaq with 4:28 left, and it worked.
Sort of, anyway.
O’Neal missed both tries after being intentionally fouled, keeping Detroit within eight — but the Heat center got his own rebound, got fouled again, and hit each shot that time to put Miami up 85-75.
"That’s just a way of telling me you can’t stop me," O’Neal said. "So, thank you. I appreciate it."
In turn, the Heat went to the Hack-a-Ben, putting Ben Wallace on the line with 3:32 left. He was 1 of 6 at the time, then missed two more, and Wade got the rebound. Antoine Walker hit Udonis Haslem for a dunk on the ensuing possession, giving Miami an 89-79 edge. And that essentially sealed the outcome.
Wade started 7 of 8 from the field for 15 points, including 13 consecutive Heat points in one stretch to give Miami a 30-24 lead. Detroit’s backcourt of Billups and Hamilton combined for 21 points in the first quarter but only five in the second when the Pistons were outscored 23-14.
They always seem to fail to see Shaq...and the rest of the Heat that have a much better supporting cast than the Cavs for the time being.
no, they worshipped Lebron all season and most of the postseason (the Lebron... oh yeah and the Pistons series just concluded). If wade is treated as the star for once, thanks to shooting freaking 70% from the floor this series, I think it's just fine. I like Lebron, and think he has lived up to his hype, tho the frequency of it is too much at times....Anyone else kind kind of worrying that the nonsense analysts at ESPN will start talking about how Wade is better then LeBron.
NBA PLAYOFFS
Heat doesn’t want series to reach seventh game
Friday, June 02, 2006
Tim Reynolds
ASSOCIATED PRESS
<!--PHOTOS--><TABLE class=phototableright align=right border=0><!-- begin large ad code --><TBODY><TR><TD><TABLE align=center><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle></IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>PAUL SANCYA ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Miami guard Dwyane Wade, listening to coach Pat Riley during Game 5, said the Heat won’t feel any pressure tonight for Game 6 on its home floor. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
MIAMI — Amid all the ramblings about pressure, poise, adjustments and the countless other ways to dissect a playoff series, Dwyane Wade cut right to the point.
"One game to win," Wade said. "That’s all we’ve got to do."
Sounds so easy.
By now, the Miami Heat knows it’s anything but — especially against the never-saydie Detroit Pistons.
One win separated the Heat from an Eastern Conference title a year ago against Detroit, but two chances slipped away as the Pistons rallied to defend their title. That one win eluded Miami again Wednesday, when Detroit played perhaps its best game of the series, won 91-78, and forced a Game 6 today.
"I think the pressure’s been on them," Pistons guard Lindsey Hunter said. "They were up 3-1. We’re supposed to be dead right now. So it’s up to them to try to close us out."
So it’s back to Miami, where the Heat hopes to celebrate its first trip to the NBA Finals — and the Pistons, who ended the Heat’s season on its home floor a year ago, will fight to force a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday in The Palace in Auburn Hills, Mich.
If either side is panicking, they’re hiding it well.
"You get three bites of the apple, basically," Heat coach Pat Riley said yesterday. "Usually on the first one, you want to try to gobble the whole thing if you can. But we didn’t. They came out with a bigger bite than us and sharper and tougher. And we get opportunity No. 2 at home to close it out."
Given that this is the Heat’s final home game of the series, it is its best opportunity as well.
"We’ve got a golden opportunity to win Game 6 at home on our home floor," Wade said after the loss Wednesday. "And it’s another game. We don’t look at nothing as pressure. They’re the defending Eastern Conference champions. There’s no pressure on us."
Tayshaun Prince had 29 points and Chauncey Billups added 17 points and 10 assists for Detroit in its Game 5 win, and Wade had 23 points and Shaquille O’Neal added 19 for the Heat — which made 6 of 20 free throws. Neither team practiced yesterday, both deciding that rest was the best medicine after the rigors of five games in nine nights. The Pistons seemed cool and confident when they arrived at their hotel, which cannot be a surprise given the way they’ve handled elimination threats in recent years.
Since 2003, in games where a loss would end their season, the Pistons are 11-2 — and have outscored opponents by an average of 13.2 points in those games.
"I think they’ll carry through," Pistons coach Flip Saunders said. "I think if you didn’t have a team that was in this situation as much as they’ve been, you’d maybe be somewhat concerned. But this team has faced elimination many times and had success."
And while many Heat players scoffed at suggestions that Game 6 is a must-win game — although O’Neal declared "every game is a must-win" — there is a clear sense of urgency and desire to avoid one more trip to The Palace.
"We don’t want to play around with these guys," Heat forward Udonis Haslem said. "You want to take advantage of the next game, no matter where it’s at."
The great debate after Game 5 was about pressure, specifically which team is feeling the most — and it’s a topic the Pistons can’t even agree on.
Pistons center Ben Wallace says it’s all on Detroit, and Billups believes it’s all on Miami. Saunders took the middle ground, saying he thinks both teams are experiencing about the same stress level at this point.
Of course, that comes from a coach who said he has been treated "like a standing pinata" of late. "I’ve pretty much done the same thing I normally do," said Saunders, who led the Pistons to an NBA-best 64-18 mark this season. "I haven’t approached it any differently. There’s no question, as a coach, if you thought you’ve prepared your guys to go out and play and have success, that’s all you really can do."
