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They are the archetype for dominance. They are the gatekeepers of the conference. They are the Detroit Pistons.

Roscoe, my friend....I am sooooo sorry that you cannot get FSN. I enjoyed the Wings AND the Pistons because I have Direct TV. I feel bad for your bad luck.

Good game tonight. Bench was awesome, especially Maxiell. The starters didn't play too many minutes, only one was Rip with 39. Billups only had 30.

Nazr was huge in the first quarter tonight, and Sheed was huge in the 4th. The bench was great in the first half, and with a bad night for Dice--no points and 4 fouls in only 12 minutes--the beneficiary was The Brahma, with 13 pts on 5 of 9 from the floor (and 3 of 4 from the line!) in 20 minutes. Flip Murray had a couple of bad turnovers, but also some nice drive and dish plays, for 5 assists total. Rip led the way with 24 points on 9 of 17 from the floor. Pistons D was pretty solid, with the Grizz only shooting 38% from the floor, though they did get to the line 34 times.

Pistons win 95-86

NBA.com

Yes it was a good game. Rip lead the team with 24 points and Sheed with 13 boards and 2 blocks. Pistons displayed a pretty deep bench tonight. Some was Flips choice and some was early foul trouble. Maxiel came up huge in extended mins (20) carrying the team for a stretch in the 2nd. Murry played almost exclusivly at the point for the 2nd straight game and did a pretty good job controlling the flow. Delfino logged in 16 mins looking very comfortable out there and seems to have found his shot going 3-6 with 1-3 pointer. But he played very smart out there which is the main thing. Hunter also saw some action.

For those of you who did not see the game the Pistons did get outscored in the paint 30-24. But keep in mind that opposing teams are looking to really test the Pistons there. Tonight it helped the Pistons to 7 blocks and holding them to 38% shooting as the Pistons did a good job denying penetration and making things hard around the paint. If this is where the opponents want to go then its actually going to work to our advantage as its going to take away a lot of what they normally do. I would rather give up some paint points if it results in a 37.8% night for the opponent.

Sheed got 1 tech which he probably deserved as he was his usual self and would not shut up. There were plenty of other times where Piston players discussed calls with the refs without penalty. Looks like if its in situations where its not going to hold up the game ( before FT's ) and its done in a productive manner they will allow it.

Anyway, 2nd straight win and 2nd straight game where Pistons took over the game down the stretch. Rebounding wise the Pistons enjoyed a 4 board difference.

That's a good point on the PIP statistic, Max. I agree with you there.

As for Delfino, he was REALLY good in the first half, but kind of crappy when he got back in there in the 4th quarter. Still, I like it when he gets minutes.

hoh! hohhhhh! look who's atop the central division and holding the league's longest win streak!!

overall, i'd say far more positives tonight than negatives. of the latter, most of it was stuff that's present in every game: a few weak defensive possessions, occasional stagnant posseession on offense. maybe the only thing that stood out among the negatives as something to really pay attention to was some dodgy passing in stretches, some of them key plays. i wondered if the bench guys might not be used to the minutes they are getting (neither the quantity nor the type of minutes) and that might be wwhy they tailed off a bit in the second half. on the positive, ditto everything said by my partner piston legend d4ever (those in chat will know) and max.

maybe i'd emphasize that sheed kept his head in it (even after a t on a questionable offensive foul call) and took over when it mattered, perhaps offering a tentative initial answer to questions about leadership from him. he'll never be perfectly reliable, in my opinion. he's an emotional guy and that will always be part of his game. if you don't want that you don't want sheed, and that's cool of course. but i do believe he is capable of channeling it... i feel like i've seen plenty of instances of him doing so.

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"Only when the past ceases to trouble and anticipations of the future are not perturbing is a being wholly united with his environment and therefore fully alive."

JMax throwing one down

ESPN.com - NBA - PhotoId_1350297_

I like when Fino gets minutes also. Throw in some minutes for J-Max too. I will go on the record right now and say if those two get 15-20 MPG, they will be ready for some nice production perhaps, come playoff time.

Accumulating these precious minutes now could result in some huge returns later in the season from our bench. Keep it up Flip, I know you will, Joe D is watching.............

Rasheed needs to calm down. I love how he's giving a great effort out there and starting to get the Pistons double digit rebounds and points inside, but if he keeps up this technical thing he will be suspended 3 or 4 times this season.