Detroit Sports

Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Pistons Down 2-1

The Detroit Pistons are in a deep hole after losing game three of the Eastern Conference Finals. Detroit lost game three in miserable fashion and need to win game four or they will be down 3-1 to the Miami Heat going back to Miami for game five.

Game three was a horrible display by the Pistons. The Pistons played half-way decent in the first half and the third quarter to keep themselves in the game. In the middle of the fourth the Pistons took a five point lead due to the great defensive play of their bench players. Once they put back in their starters the trouble began. They played "hack a Shaq" and Shaq made the Pistons pay by hitting six straight free throws to give Miami back the lead. The Pistons could not recover and the Heat finished the game with a 113-104 victory.

The Pistons' defense again struggled in this game. They allowed 113 points, a number you almost never see an opposing team score against the Pistons. Detroit only had one block and that was by Lindsey Hunter. The highest rebound total for a single player was Rasheed Wallace (eight rebounds). I think one of the main reasons the Pistons' defense is struggling is because of Ben Wallace. He has not played well on the defense end. All of his defensive numbers are done from the previous series. He must provide a much higher defensive output if Detroit expects to come back and win this series.

Rip Hamilton finally had a good game scoring 33 points but it was not enough. Tayshaun Prince and Chauncey Billups each scored 18 points a piece to give a boost to the Pistons' offense.

Game four is on tonight at 8:00 p.m. I still believe the Pistons are the best team in the league. They will have to prove that they are the best team by winning this game. However, even if they win they will still have a long way to go to winning this series. The next two out of three games will be in Miami where the Heat are even better. They need to put aside the Larry Brown issue and just play the game. Tonight's game should be a great one as we watch the desperate Pistons trying not to fall into a 3-1 hole.

Saturday, May 28, 2005

Series Tied 1-1

After a dismal performance by the Detroit Pistons, the Eastern Conference Finals is now tied 1-1. The Pistons played a horrible game two but they were still in the game until the end. The Pistons took the lead in the second half but the Heat came back strong in the end to win 92-86.

Rip Hamilton had another horrible game. He looked slow and he could not hit his mid-range jumper. I know he has a leg injury but he needs to step up his game.

Incredibly, Ben Wallace also had a bad game. He could not score like he did in game one. His shot was blocked three times. Even his defense looked a lot worse than normal. The Pistons rely on Wallace heavily for his defense and he must step up his game as well.

Although the Pistons played bad, they still probably would have won if it was not for Dwyane Wade's amazing performance. He scored 40 points for the Heat. He was unstoppable the entire game. He finished the game with a dunk to end any chance of a comeback bid for Detroit.

The series now shifts back to Detroit for game three and four. The Pistons won one of two in Miami and now the Pistons need to take care of business at home. I think the Pistons will be much more focused in game three and win to take the 2-1 series lead.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Pistons Update

The Detroit Pistons are just seven wins away from becoming back to back Champions. After losing game two and three in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals against the Pacers; the Pistons came back to win game four, five, and six. Game six was the last game of Reggie Miller's career. Reggie had a great game scoring 27 points; allowing Indiana to have the lead for most of the game. Reggie Miller's last game was great, but it was not enough as Rip Hamilton took over the fourth quarter for the Pistons. At the end of the game Larry Brown made a classy move by taking a timeout so the fans and the Pistons could cheer the ending of Miller's great career as he was benched for the last time.

After Detroit closed out the Pacers, the Pistons went to Miami to play the Heat in game one of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pistons won game one 90-81.

Shaq starting the game (there was some speculation that he was not going to start) and was dominate in the first half. He scored 20 points, for the entire game, on 9-14 shooting in just 33 minutes of work. Dwyane Wade had a horrible game for Miami shooting just 7-25 for 16 points.

Rip Hamilton had a bad game for Detroit but he scored a big basket at the end of the game to seal the win for the Pistons.

Rasheed Wallace had another big game for the Pistons. He scored 20 points and made four three pointers. He also included a huge block at the end of the game and even snagged ten rebounds.

Game two is on tonight. If the Pistons can win it would be huge because they then would have a 2-0 series lead going back to Detroit. This should be a harder game for Detroit because the Heat should play much better than they did in game one.

Monday, May 16, 2005

Pistons Tied 2-2

Sorry for the lack of updates lately, I have been very busy. I am hoping to get the site back up and running soon........

Quick Playoff Update: The Detroit Pistons are tied with the Indiana Pacers 2-2 after the first four games of the second round of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. The Pistons lost game 2 and 3 after winning game one. Rasheed Wallace guaranteed a victory in game 4 and the Pistons came through with a huge victory on the road. The series now moves back to Detroit for a critical game 5.

Thursday, May 05, 2005

Pistons Advance

The Detroit Pistons advanced to the second round of the playoffs after they beat the Sixers in 5 games.

In game 5 the Pistons did not look awesome but they got the job done. Rip Hamilton had a great fourth quarter to lead the Pistons. Ben Wallace, who won the defensive player of the year award again, again played a solid game.

The Pistons now move unto play the Celtics or Pacers in the second round.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Pistons up 3-1

After losing game 3 in Philadelphia, the Detroit Pistons came back in game 4 to beat the Sixers to take a 3-1 first round series lead.

The Pistons were down by 9 points with just 6 minutes left in the game 4. Chauncey Billups scored 12 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter to help send the game into overtime. In overtime Rasheed Wallace hit two 3 pointers to help seal the 97-92 victory.

The Pistons played a sloppy game but they will take the victory. They turned the ball over 20 times and shot just 43 percent from the field.

The series now goes back to Detroit for game 5. I fully expect the Pistons to beat the Sixers and move unto the next series.