[ChrisWoj]

Some notes, judging purely by statistics:

1. Nice to see Rasheed break out and have a 20 point performance, however I really hate to see it come at the cost of efficiency out there... 8/21? 1/6 from 3? Horrid game from the field, but hopefully the aggressiveness will bring some efficient scoring in coming games.

2. Tayshaun Prince shot over 50% from the field for his usual cut... 15 points... but 3/6 from the free throw line? At home in the relative quiet? C'mon Tay! That should have been an 18 point game! I'm sure Flip will be on his case about that.

3. On the other side of the card... Ben Wallace went 4/4 from the line upping his season average to a shining 65.5%! Ben Wallace, nailing his free throws? Can we say career high in PPG? Seriously, folks... if he hits near 70% of his free throws the last few years, that's probably another couple of points onto his season averages. He's going to get a few less contested shots this year if teams think he'll nail those freebies.

4. Darko Milicic goes 2/3 from the field in five minutes, pulling down three rebounds... I'd love to see him on the floor more early. Antonio McDyess just isn't getting it done, and Darko is SERIOUSLY as close as Flip Saunders is going to find to KG on this team. If he wants big men playing a face-up game and to get them the ball further from the hoop, Darko Milicic's lateral speed and height would make him a key player out there. GET HIM IN THE GAMES, DAMMIT.


Thats all I have, you've all been great... good night!

[DetBNyce]

Originally Posted by ChrisWoj

3. On the other side of the card... Ben Wallace went 4/4 from the line upping his season average to a shining 65.5%! Ben Wallace, nailing his free throws? Can we say career high in PPG? Seriously, folks... if he hits near 70% of his free throws the last few years, that's probably another couple of points onto his season averages. He's going to get a few less contested shots this year if teams think he'll nail those freebies.

I'm happy with the FT shooting and I won't say it will eventually go down, because he's actually looked pretty good. But his scoring averaghe isn't going anywhere if he doesn't start actually shooting the ball and stop throwing up what looks like the equivalent of him trying to throw the ball through the backboard.

4. Darko Milicic goes 2/3 from the field in five minutes, pulling down three rebounds... I'd love to see him on the floor more early. Antonio McDyess just isn't getting it done, and Darko is SERIOUSLY as close as Flip Saunders is going to find to KG on this team. If he wants big men playing a face-up game and to get them the ball further from the hoop, Darko Milicic's lateral speed and height would make him a key player out there. GET HIM IN THE GAMES, DAMMIT.

I like what Darko did, and I'm not exactly sure why he was taken out. Al Jefferson was giving him a really tough time, but their big men gave every big on our team troubles yesterday, so it was no need to single out Darko. In fact he should've taken out Ben.

As you can see I was very upset in the way ben played yesterday. I would compare it to the way he opened the season last year.

[DetBNyce]

Chauncey Billups thought about it for a second, and then, shook his head.

"Nah, that wasn't my best quarter, man," he said. "I've had better."

Perhaps. He had a 24-point quarter against the Mavericks, once, and two 18-point quarters last season. But his 17-point outburst in the third quarter Tuesday night was nothing short of sensational.


"Things weren't going too good and I figured I might as well try my luck," said Billups, who finished with 25 points and 10 assists in the Pistons' seventh straight victory to start the season, 115-100 over the Boston Celtics at The Palace.

"I started rolling, you know, and I just put them on my back," Billups said. "I carried us into the fourth quarter and then everybody else took over."

Game Recap from the Detroit News

[Jacoby_Ellsbury]

Originally Posted by P33r~

That's typical Pistons play for you. Blazing in the fourth.

I beg to differ. It's the Celtics trademark move to have 4th quarter meltdowns.

[kamego]

Originally Posted by TheBigDonut

I beg to differ. It's the Celtics trademark move to have 4th quarter meltdowns.

The melt down was in the 3rd quarter when the Pistons got back in the game. It was more Pistons coming back and scoring 67 in the 2nd half then a melt down.

[casebeck22]

Originally Posted by kamego

The melt down was in the 3rd quarter when the Pistons got back in the game. It was more Pistons coming back and scoring 67 in the 2nd half then a melt down.

That and Chauncey just decided everyone else on the court was no good except for him lol

[Jacoby_Ellsbury]

2nd half meltdown, not much difference there take it from someone who knows the C's. I love snooping on other team's forums and seeing what they say about us. If it ain't nice i let 'em have it.

[kamego]

Originally Posted by TheBigDonut

2nd half meltdown, not much difference there take it from someone who knows the C's. I love snooping on other team's forums and seeing what they say about us. If it ain't nice i let 'em have it.

Boston still shot well in the 2nd half, the differance was Detroit played defense and Billups remember he needs an Season MVP for his desk still

[casebeck22]

Originally Posted by TheBigDonut

2nd half meltdown, not much difference there take it from someone who knows the C's. I love snooping on other team's forums and seeing what they say about us. If it ain't nice i let 'em have it.

Well this is hostile territory for you my friend lol

[casebeck22]

Originally Posted by kamego

Boston still shot well in the 2nd half, the differance was Detroit played defense and Billups remember he needs an Season MVP for his desk still

kamego with the word play

i love it

[spongyfungy]

It's another chemistry lesson


Pistons show Celtics how it's done in comeback victory

By Shira Springer, Globe Staff | November 16, 2005

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Once again, the Celtics proved they could play with the Pistons. But not for an entire game.

A first half filled with promise, hustle, effective ball movement, and easy baskets for Boston gave way to a second half marked by frustration, a broken-down offense, and certain individuals trying to save the team by themselves. Good execution turned into good intentions run amok.

Detroit, as championship-caliber teams do, stayed composed and confident. When the right time came, the Pistons were ready, with Chauncey Billups assuming the role of demoralizing sharpshooter usually reserved for Richard Hamilton.

The Pistons' 115-100 win and 7-0 record are testament to what happens when a team stays together and builds chemistry over a matter of years, not weeks. In fact, it was Ben Wallace who told relative newcomer coach Flip Saunders ''don't worry" when Detroit trailed by 12 points in the second quarter and 13 early in the third.

Wallace knew the Pistons were capable of rattling the Celtics with a single run and riding the emotion inside a sold-out Palace of Auburn Hills to a comeback victory. But he probably did not expect Detroit to dominate the way it did in the second half, outscoring Boston, 67-42.

The Celtics' fourth loss of the season was a reminder of how much they have to improve, especially when it comes to keeping their poise in the fourth quarter. Despite defeating New York in overtime in the season opener and beating Memphis at the buzzer, the Celtics have struggled with execution at the end of close games. They lack the trust and experience that makes Detroit so successful.

''It's a great lesson for us," said coach Doc Rivers. ''We can play with this team. We've proved that. But they've been through so much in the past three years, they can't be shaken. We've been together for one month and things shake us."


http://www.boston.com/sports/basketb...mistry_lesson/

[spongyfungy]

Celts fight, fall short: Unbeaten Pistons rally for KO

The Celts were shaken, rattled and rolled in the fourth quarter, getting outscored 38-19 and laying to waste Ricky Davis’ 31-point night. The C’s shot 67 percent in the first half and 60 percent through three quarters, but made just 7-of-21 from the floor in the final frame (no fast-break points after 19 prior) while the Pistons were hitting 65 percent and on all cylinders.
“They were stepping on our neck early, and we had to show that we had some fight in us,” the Pistons’ Rasheed Wallace said.
Rivers lamented “the unforced turnovers and the unforced bad shots by us. We lost our patience. The whole key to the game was patience. We still had chances to run back and they kept looking over at me for a (play) call, and I kept trying to get us back up the floor. But we’re going to get that. That’s going to come. They turned up the heat and we didn’t handle that very well. But that’s OK. We’ll handle it well in the future.