This is pretty easy to determine. How many of the Celtics free throws were off of FG attempts vs. bonus related?

Boston was getting shut down. They weren't the aggressors, we were.

This game actually make me rethink my theory on HCA. I just figured that the margins were caused by unconscious helpful reffing to the home team. After seeing this, I think the HCA must be cause purely by crowd noise helping addreniline, and familiar visuals in the home arena.

Here it is. Game 5 winner will win this series. This and game 2 were the most important games of the series. It was easy to pick the Pistons in game 4. I knew they'd win... Pickin game 5 is harder. So I'll predict the winner and the score. Pistons 88-85.........

Here is how unusual tonight was.

Boston had 21 field goals. For comparison...

NBA Finals Record
Fewest field goals, team, game:
21 - Utah at Chicago, June 7, 1998
So, if this would have been the Finals, it would have been a historic low, even though Boston was only down 4 points in the final quarter.

The fewest number in any NBA game was 18, so Boston barely beat that mark. (Chicago vs. Miami, April 10th, 1999). Compare that to the 74 FG's that Detroit made in that famous game in Denver.

On May 24, 1987, the Pistons made 61 fields goals against... Boston! Over 80 more points from the field than Boston had against us tonight.


I'm just a little upset that our ridiculous defense went somewhat unrewarded through the smog of over-reffing.

__________________
You can never have perfect introspection: because if you could, then you could determine what you were going to do ten seconds from now, and then do something else.

“Dice has been our best player in the postseason, and we’re all feeding off his energy,” teammate and close friend Chauncey Billups said. “You see how hard he is working, and you can’t help but play hard.”


This comment bothers me. It shouldn't... maybe...but it does. They should be playing hard regardless. Maybe Dice should make them play harder...but not hard. Semantics? Perhaps.

McDyess' 21 points and 16 rebounds lift Pistons over Celtics - NBA - Yahoo! Sports


It probably won't happen, but it would be so great to see Mcdyess get a ring.

Nice find. Just imagine what it's going to be like in BOS

This is what I noticed in how Boston slips after the second half. You must give 110 per cent effort in the first half. If you lead, or are within a couple of points; then pressure, the bench and fatigue lets you win it in the end.

Lack of rhythm (caused by the refs) always hurts the home team, which is what happened tonight.

Thank you Dyess and JMax.

Sheed was just so, so, (hey, what do you expect for 13 million). CB was off and continues to struggle and looks slow (he is not aging well and again in the 12 million range). Rip finally got into the flow and put the game on ice. Prince is lost, slows down the offense and this from your 3 position? I can excuse this because he is only making 10 million.

I am mad at Flip, because it isn't his role to stop the starters from embrassing themselves for the second home game stretch. But, then again, he gets paid to win games.

Dyess, in his interview had it right.

First off, Flip Saunders is an idiot! He played Dyess too many minutes in the reg season and there is no way he'll be effective in the playoffs.

I think the road team has gotten the benefit of the whistles in this series, games 2-4 at least. Why do I see that taking a drastic turn in 2 out of the next 3 games?

That being said, teams will have to sit players with 2 fouls for a bit, but it will always be DET who loses players for huge stretches with 4 and 5 fouls.

I could have sworn I saw some civil interaction between Sheed and Dan Crawford. Man I used to love seeing LB go after him.

Flip took a T for the team and I think it helped. He is such a dud over there though. I wish he could go off and just be forceful with them. It is well worth the point to make your point.

I thought putting Sheed on KG early really made a difference. He did a really nice job pressuring him and hindering their offense. KG is a lot tougher to guard if you let him hit a few to start.

Conversely, Sheed and Dyess hitting the long J's to start the game off of good movement opened DET's offense up.

I think Flip played CB, Stuckey and Hunter at PG in the 1st half. I wish he did stuff like that in season.

I think Hunter has played well, minus G3, this series.

The announcers make a big deal out of Pierce guarding Tay, but you don't have to guard Tay 1 on 1. You guard him with your team D and by stopping other folks. Unless he's posting you there isn't a lot to worry about there.

Putting Cassell on CB was a smart move by Doc. It made Billups have to go at him when he wasn't up to it. It had to be well into the 3rd quarter before I stopped lamenting and adding CB's 2 missed free throws to the score. It makes me wonder about Chauncey when his game totally collapses like this. He should be able to shoot free throw with a broken leg.

Who shows up Wednesday? I wish I knew. Had this been G3 it would have been a lot nicer.

What a way to endure a bad officiating game, a (another) bad rebounding night, and another bad night for CB (except that 3pt jump shot). Pierce struggled, yet managed to create 16pts. But then, i couldnt be happier with the word "won". Thank God for Dyess. 21/16/1. You can see his heart flaming in there. If only sheed was fired up the way he is, then this series should have been 3-1 already. Good luck to us on Wednesday.

Go kill 'em (again) Dyess.

Just read Dyess' post-game. WOW....just WOW. After that, if they don't bring it home, then break it up. I pray that they have turned the mental corner. I can only imagine that film session on sunday, Rip and Chauncey with their usual "We Straight..... If it aint rough it aint right.......this what we do.....we aiight...." BS, and the normally quiet McDyess jumps up emphatically and says what Pistonland has been wanting to say for 4 years, "MAN STFU WITH ALL THAT BULL****!!!!!, I'm Tired of y'all mutha$*#'s with same ol BS year after Year!!!!! Quit Making EXCUSES and LEAVE IT ALL ON THE FLOOR!!!!!!" Dyess, we don't say it enough, but THANK-YOU!!!!! From the bottom of our hearts, THANK-YOU!!!!

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"Ain't nothin' strange 'bout yo daddy, what's strange is what he had to deal wit'!!!!!" - Rev. AL.

Well everyone, that was pretty darned fun.

I have tons of confidence that there will at least be a game 7, even if it stems from bitter pessimism.
Of course the guys will take this to the limit and pull at the heartstrings before they flop on us.

Then again....if the Pistons really want to toy with us....they should make it all the way to the Finals!
They can take a 3 games to none lead, get me and Darth back on the bandwagon, and then to top it all off The Low can post something very McGradylike about him being glad that the team won another 'Ship.....etc....etc

And then they can promptly drop 4 in a row.

Yea....now that is doing it the right way.

Pistons might just win this series!