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Smooth-running Pistons beat Pacers 86-67
Indiana coach Rick Carlisle used all four of his second-half timeouts in the third quarter, trying to slow down the Detroit Pistons. It didn't work. Ben Wallace had 19 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks to lead Detroit to an 86-67 victory Tuesday night over the Pacers, and a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.
"I think it's probably one of our best performances," Wallace said. "When we play like that, we're a tough team to beat." The outcome was a foregone conclusion by the fourth quarter, but the final few minutes provided a couple of oddly entertaining moments. League rules require that each team calls a timeout in the fourth quarter, but because Carlisle didn't have any left, the Pacers were called for a technical foul with 2:17 left. "I've never seen that. It blew me away," Pistons coach Larry Brown, whose NBA coaching career started in 1976, said in a postgame interview with The Associated Press. "I asked (official) Joe Crawford if he's ever seen it, and he said he hadn't in his 28 years." Seldom-used Piston Darko Milicic, the second overall pick in 2003, made the technical foul shot. "It wasn't that big of a deal," Carlisle said of the quick second-half timeouts. "But at the time, I felt like if we were going to have a chance to stay in it, we needed to stop the game." Game 6 is Thursday night in Indianapolis. Of the previous 123 series tied 2-2, the winner of Game 5 advanced 103 times (84 percent) in best-of-seven series. Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal had 14 points and Stephen Jackson scored 12. Reggie Miller was held to eight points — his third single-digit scoring game of the series — and Jamaal Tinsley scored just two. Tayshaun Prince had 16 points for the Pistons, Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton each scored 13 points and Rasheed Wallace added 10. Detroit's reserves — led by Antonio McDyess and Carlos Arroyo — keyed a 15-2 run late in the first half, giving the Pistons a 42-33 lead. The Pistons' starters — all back from last year's title run — put Indiana away with a 15-0 burst to start the second half. Detroit dominated because it was scrappy and aggressive on defense and unselfish and calm on offense. Detroit had a 23-21 lead after the first quarter following three lead changes and four ties. Prince led the Pistons with 10 points while O'Neal had eight for the Pacers. Indiana held Detroit scoreless for over four minutes in the second quarter and went ahead 31-27, then the Pistons took over. The first-half run began when Ben Wallace grabbed Prince's airball and scored and it ended with his swooping, reverse dunk. Detroit's bench is often pointed to as a weakness, but Arroyo and McDyess sparked the Pistons' comeback in the second quarter. Without making a shot, Arroyo was commanding during Detroit's surge with four assists and McDyess scored eight points in the second quarter. After a scoreless first half with two fouls, Rasheed Wallace went after O'Neal — leading to the Indiana center's fourth foul — on the first possession of the second quarter and made two free throws. The Pistons outscored Indiana 27-11 in the third quarter, taking a 69-46 lead. The Pacers pulled within 20 early in the fourth, then Detroit scored eight straight points. If Game 7 is necessary, it will be Sunday back at The Palace. ... O'Neal, who has been bothered by a shoulder injury, grimaced in pain during halftime warmups and raised his arms above his head, but he played in the second half. ... Four hours before the game, agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were taking bomb-sniffing dogs around the arena.
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