http://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/DET_3079.gifhttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/vs.gifhttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/team/MIA_799.gif

Detroit Pistons vs Miami Heat
March 22nd, 2006 ~ 8:00pm
The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, MI
TV: tv20 / ESPN Radio: WDFN


Probable Starting Lineups

Your Detroit Pistons

Ben WallaceRasheed WallaceTayshaun PrinceRip HamiltonChauncey Billupshttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/ben_wallace.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/rasheed_wallace.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/tayshaun_prince.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/richard_hamilton.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/pistons/chauncey_billups.jpg

The Miami Heat (boo, hiss)

Shaquille O'NealUdonis HaslemJames PoseyDwyane WadeJason Williamshttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/shaquille_oneal.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/udonis_haslem.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/james_posey.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/dwyane_wade.jpghttp://www.pistonsforum.com/img/resources/heat/jason_williams.jpg

~Tale of the Tape~

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http://www.pistonsforum.com/images/picdump/mia032206-2.png
http://www.pistonsforum.com/images/picdump/mia032206-3.png
http://www.pistonsforum.com/images/picdump/mia032206-4.png

GUESS THE SCORE!!

Your Comments??
~

Snaq DNP in Minnesota with a "sore thumb" and is "questionable" for this game.:rolleyes: Is this game "must-win" enough for ESPN to dredge up their Willis Reed footage?

Edit: there is a legitimate injury, though it didn't look like anything many NBA players don't play through all the time.

Watched the Heat game vs Twins, I mean wolves, tonight. Even without Shaq they should have taken this one. They 'appear' to be very scary but I gotta admit Posey and Fattwon do nothing for me! And JWill? HA! I must admit, I want shaq for this one cuz I dont wanna hear no damn changes from them about who didnt play. I expect us to show our butts hard tonight,,,99-84! Bring the noise, my peoples!!!:fingerscr

BTW..yall can check out my jounal at

http://journals.aol.com/oldskoolhq/OLDSKOOLHQSNEWSANDVIEWS/

IF Micro will let you:eyebrows: :welcome: :yo: luv ya

[Ros: Had to fix your link HQ]

Shaq better play. I'm driving from Chicago to the Detroit for my first game at the Palace since game 4 of the Finals. We are sitting next to Bill D. and the Pistons' bench. I'll report back on all the trash talking that goes on.

Shaq will play. Look at the situation. They are playing for virtually nothing right now. They really can't move up or down in the standings. Wouldn't you throw away 1 game against the T-Wolves to have a better chance against the Pistons with a rested Shaq? A chance to gain a "mental edge". That's all it is.

BTW, the "injury" he got happend in the first half against the Knicks. He happend to be healthy enough to come back in the 3rd, and go back in later in the 4th to pad his stats.

As for the game.... There are 2 keys...

1. Ben can't worry about fouls. We've got Dale Davis, Dice, and Sheed (maybe Cato will be activated? He said he was ready). I will vomit if I see Shaq pull one of his usual 12 for 15 jobs against us. MAKE HIM SHOOT FREE THROWS! It's not like Ben does a ton against the Heat anyways. He can't help defend or Shaq has a dunk-fest.

2. Lindsey Hunter or Carlos Delfino should be in the game as much as possible to defend Wade. Those 2 do the best job on him of anyone I've seen.

He'll (shaq) probably play but with playoffs around the corner they may not want to do any further damage to this injury. Just a thought though.I know Miami won the last game but I noticed that even with Shaq at his best Miami was still down.Wade went off and I think it caught Detroit a little off guard that late in the game. So hopefully they'll be better prepared this time around.

His thumb may have swoll up on him late. A win here is just learning for them. A loss for us is a mind check. Starting with Sheed.
100 to 98, Ps

i want to see lindsey play today. he'll make williams turn the ball over a lot. If we keep wade under 35 points it's a win unless he sucks the first 3 quarters, and he has another good fourth quarter. Yhat happens a lot with him, and he'll bring the team back from a double digit deficit, but this mostly happens in miami and not on the road.

We can definitely win this game with or without Shaq playing for the Heat. As long as we play smart and play the entire game instead of 3 quarters only. That's how we lost during the game at Miami. Instead of playing smart basketball, we started jacking up 3s and letting Wade get hot.

Sheed and Tay should play closer to the rim at the offensive end. Both of them can actually get them in foul trouble if they attack the rim more. On the defensive end, both of them should help out on the rebounds or just simply block out.

Do not afraid to foul Shaq if necessary. Big Ben should not save his fouls. Make Shaq earn his points at the foul line. Put Hunter on Wade, put Delfino on Wade, put Tay on Wade, put Hamilton on Wade and he should be worn out by the 4th. Make Wade play on both ends and with the Heat on back to back road games as well as 4 games in 5 nights, Wade should be worn out by the 4th quarter.

As long as we play DETROIT BASKETBALL DEFENSE, we should win this game BIG TIME.

We can definitely win this game with or without Shaq playing for the Heat. As long as we play smart and play the entire game instead of 3 quarters only.
The Wolves were down big early but put on a third quarter clinic and still nearly lost. Hard to say whether the blame comes from their lack of offensive variety or the Heat closing down on defense in the fourth. Mourning and Payton can get it done in short bursts (even Walker was chasing some guys around). The Heat seem to get stronger as the game goes on. Might not hold up tonight with Zo if Shaq doesn't play though. He put in 36 last night.

This game is big. Real big. Massive.

Pistons win, playoff momentum is gained. Pistons lose on homecourt, the Heat are feeling real good about their chances.

Forget the record coming into this game from either team. Forget the recent streaks. This will be a dramatic street fight for Eastern Supremacy.

I'm hoping to record it on my computer (new setup). With some luck I will have everything working for tip off.

This game along with games against SUNS & MAVS should represent the importance of HCA. All are statment games that squash any hope of going through us to win the SHIP.

There is no excuse for low energy or lack of execution. Some teams have been running at playoff intensity for weeks now, as they try to qualify for the show. For all intents and purposes our playoffs begin tonight.

This game along with games against SUNS & MAVS should represent the importance of HCA. All are statment games that squash any hope of going through us to win the SHIP.

There is no excuse for low energy or lack of execution. Some teams have been running at playoff intensity for weeks now, as they try to qualify for the show. For all intents and purposes our playoffs begin tonight.

is anything miami has the excuses. they're on a back-back, and they are on the road. there is no excuses for our team this game.

is anything miami has the excuses. they're on a back-back, and they are on the road. there is no excuses for our team this game.

And Shaq sat out last night with a sore hand. Wade also took a flagrant last night and played the rest of the game with his wrist wrapped. I didn't turn on until after the foul so I'm not sure how serious it was.

BTW..yall can check out my jounal at

http://journals.aol.com/oldskoolhq/OLDSKOOLHQSNEWSANDVIEWS/

IF Micro will let you:eyebrows: :welcome: :yo: luv ya

[Ros: Had to fix your link HQ]thanks, old man! U know I love ya,bro! See ya in the chat tonight...German wine for me 2nite:laugh: Its a Wednesday...

sunday...red wine
monday...mixed drink
tuesday...mixed drink
wednesday...german white wine
thursday....italian red wine
friday.....beer me
saturday...leftover beer me:P my bruddah!

Shaq better play. I'm driving from Chicago to the Detroit for my first game at the Palace since game 4 of the Finals. We are sitting next to Bill D. and the Pistons' bench. I'll report back on all the trash talking that goes on.Looking forward to it, Bruddah 22. Give a shout out to your Forum bros/sis' on TV tonight. And make sure they keep the mic away from The Hit Man if at all possible...my bruddah!:laugh:

Don Casey makes some good points on this game

http://www.nba.com/features/coachs_casey_060322.html

That's an interesting commentary himat..

"Jason Williams (http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jason_williams/index.html) is the type of player that could come unglued under such pressure or he could burn them"

No way we can Let Jason Williams get to the rack as easily as he did the last game.

That was a good report Himat.

it helps that we have 2 good defensive gaurds in hunter and delk unlike last time. arroyo is a better playmaker, but delk is better defensively and he's a better shooter. Williams will have a much tougher time this game, and now the pistons should be back to wanting to win games since san antone is only a half a game behind us. no one on miami can gaurd sheed. look for rasheed to post up because for about 1-2 weeks he's made an effort there instead of staying at the 3 point line, and we might see chauncey give up shots to rip, and tay to make wade work. chauncey has given up the ball to tay to get him out of his funk, and he knows when to shoot. No way will we meltdown like before if a situation with Wade starts to happen we'll make someone else make a comeback. Shaq probably can't do that at his age, and if we keep Wade under control it's a win.

I bet JW gets 10 before Wade.

Boy I can tell there is alot of excitment in the air with all the pre game posting for this game. This game will have a makings of the first game played at the Palace it will go to the wire.

Pistons will pull it of 95 to 92. GO PISTONS!!!!!

Agree there are no excuses... we also had an extra day to prepare (like the Heat did for us last time)...
I was kinda hoping to see Cato a lil ... just to see if he's able to stall the Diesel.
J Will killed us getting inside last game... no doubt Lindsey will make a difference.
The last game against the Heat was almost exclusively from the perimiter... we won't get anyone in foul trouble that way... Sheed has a clear advantage over their PF's in the paint... look for Zo to switch out which could play into our plans of drawing him out of the paint.
I still think we're gonna hold out some tricks for a possible playoff matchup (ie expose Shaq's lack of mobility)... we can run against this team (especially Ben)...
there's absolutely no pressure for the Heat... they still have us once more in Miami... I expect them to play loose...
time to introduce "The Wade rules".
Agree with Delfino on D.W.... or even L.H.
There could be some real physical play tonight... watch for some altercations and T's.

Six pack...check
Movie to keep kids out of hair... check
Lucky Bing Jersey...check
No expensive breakable objects in the vicinity... check
Shaq voodoo doll... check
Renew Zo haters club membership...check
Lee back on ignore list... check

Ok... play ball!!!

I bet JW gets 10 before Wade.

i bet not.

Six pack...check
Movie to keep kids out of hair... check
Lucky Bing Jersey...check
No expensive breakable objects in the vicinity... check
Shaq voodoo doll... check
Renew Zo haters club membership...check
Lee back on ignore list... check

Ok... play ball!!!

AHAHAHAHAHA

I have the exact same pre-game checklist! (except mine is a Big Ben jersey, and I throw on a Pistons hat as well for good measure when its an especially important game).

I always get rid of any breakables and ensure that I have at least 3 or 4 good pillows on hand to throw around (and to yell into when the baby is sleeping).

I don't know if this is the best game for Cato to come back for though. Although I'd love to see him get some minutes, Shaq isn't exactly a great way to ease back into game shape. I was hoping he'd already be back by now, but now I hope he sits out one more game.

I hear Buckets has a hammy.

Chat is open!

**INFO** (http://www.pistonsforum.com/news/853-pistonsforum-com-game-chat-debut.html)

Agree there are no excuses... we also had an extra day to prepare (like the Heat did for us last time)...
I was kinda hoping to see Cato a lil ... just to see if he's able to stall the Diesel.
J Will killed us getting inside last game... no doubt Lindsey will make a difference.
The last game against the Heat was almost exclusively from the perimiter... we won't get anyone in foul trouble that way... Sheed has a clear advantage over their PF's in the paint... look for Zo to switch out which could play into our plans of drawing him out of the paint.
I still think we're gonna hold out some tricks for a possible playoff matchup (ie expose Shaq's lack of mobility)... we can run against this team (especially Ben)...
there's absolutely no pressure for the Heat... they still have us once more in Miami... I expect them to play loose...
time to introduce "The Wade rules".
Agree with Delfino on D.W.... or even L.H.
There could be some real physical play tonight... watch for some altercations and T's.

Six pack...check
Movie to keep kids out of hair... check
Lucky Bing Jersey...check
No expensive breakable objects in the vicinity... check
Shaq voodoo doll... check
Renew Zo haters club membership...check
Lee back on ignore list... check

Ok... play ball!!!lmao..lol...lmao
Going to get the lasagna out the oven..I am ready!!My bruddah!

Chat is open!

**INFO** (http://www.pistonsforum.com/news/853-pistonsforum-com-game-chat-debut.html)thanks for the avatar, my main bro. Thats been me for 30 years. I've always signed my name with that face and hat...u r the man!!:yo:

Well so much for recording the game. You gotta love Micro$haft Windows.

Maybe next time. GO PISTONS! BEAT THE HEAT!

The Central Importance of Me

The turning point in this game came at halftime, when I left the chat and vowed not to return if we picked it up in the second half. And lo, that's exactly what happened. So y'all are welcome and I'll never see you in the chat again.

No for real, I think there were two main stories in this one. The first was Rip's defense on Wade (helped about my a nice run by Lindsay in the 4th) and the team's overall defense in the 2nd half. Wade has always seemed to me to get easily frazzled and from there prone to forcing and turnovers. And Rip definitely discombobulated him throughout: staying in front of him, forcing him into forced contested jumpers. As for the team overall, the Heat scored just 30 points in the 2nd half and really had no offense at all outside of what Shaq could supply on occasion, and even that seemed to stop working in the 4th quarter. The second main story for me in this one was the turnovers and points off turnovers. The Pistons scored, I believe, 24 points off of 15 Miami turnovers, whereas the Heat scored exactly ZERO points off of 5 Pistons turnovers (including 0 in the 2nd half).

I also think the Pistons showed much better patience and judgment with their shot selection in the second half. Their shooting percentage overall still sucked (just 35 % for the game), but after shooting 13 impatient 3s in the first half, they shot just 9 in the second, almost all of them reasonably good looks in the flow of the offense. It's not that the Pistons started pounding the paint in the 2nd half (and I'll agree with those who say we could have done that more), but they did go inside a little more, and they certainly were getting more penetration to get to the line or to dish for shorter jumpers. This added up to a 47-30 Pistons advantage in the 2nd half. Someone wanted to domination from the game tonight and though the first half was pretty disappointing, I think in the 2nd half we saw solid Pistons domination: suffocating defense, patient, fluid offense, good contributions from Lindsey and Dyess off the bench, and an important professional adjustment away from what wasn't working and toward exploiting Miami's weaknesses (for example, Dyess taking Shaq out of the paint in the 4th; exposing Miami's weak perimeter game).

I think this was a big game, psychologically, for the team (though I expect they'll downplay it). They started out sluggishly and looked scared and they could have just continued to mail in the performance and prepared a post-game downplay spin. Instead, they relocated their missing cojones and stuck it to a team that -- judging from the looks on their faces in the early second half -- thought they were in control.

p.s. Zo's injury obviously made a difference, but I don't think his presence would have taken Miami over the top because what he provides isn't where Miami was struggling.

YEAAAAH!!!!

:nod:

Brings everything back into the light doesn't it.

Defensive slippage my foot.

Our offense was way down, but we kept the defense. I didn't see the game, I just followed it on the net, well, better than nothing. The NBA TV here is showing Sonics and the Bucks????

Another DNP for Delfino, and here I was thinking that FLip said he'll use him against Wade. Hang in there Carlos, time will come. Don't make us all hate you by becoming your former primadonna self. :nod:

Way to hold down Wade. 3-15 shooting. Nice.

Shaq is always gonna be Shaq. Love the guy but unless he's in a Pistons Uniform I'm always gonna be against him.

NICE...........GO DETROIT. THe Central's ours now for sure.

Right?

:eyebrows:

Heat came out red hot and the Ps were cold--in shooting only. the passing was there, just an icy rim. Then Rip hit a 3 and Dyess got hot and we erased a 10 deficit. Heat cooled off, party over. Heat was very physical in the paint.
Rip could not hit a jumper off a curl to save his life.
Mo came in and was 2 for 5 - 2 helps, 5 f'ups.
...Hey Himat did either of those guys get 10 pts?

I have said all along on both boards that we can turn up the D when we want to. We didn't even go all out early. But our offense, (again), almost beat us. We had none in the first half. Most of the blame should fall on Chauncey. The Heat can guard us when we slow up tempo and do a two man game. Shaq can camp in the middle. What happened in the second half was that the second team spread the floor like Phoenix, the Heat were a bit more tired, and we exposed there slowness of foot. If we play up tempo against these guys, they can't beat us. If we slow it down, they can win. We need to use Ben in the offensive flow against this team and run them more--not necessarily to take a quick look but it puts them at a disadvantage on the set.

We did a good job of keeping Wade off of the boards. Believe it or not, we are guarding Shaq better this year than last year despite his good game. We now know Wade's game better too. Dyss creates all kinds of problems for this team. And we all saw what Tay did. But the key was getting more guys involved and upping the tempo.

Our edge is our overall team speed and youth and athleticism at key positions. Shaq is always dominant early but we save our fouls and our bigs for the second half. Shaq can play 40 minutes but he can't play 40 dominant minutes. Look at the shots. They are a two man team when push comes to shove.

Nice win. And it puts the Pistons in lead of the season series 2-1.

Key points. Only 5 TO's for the Pistons and 15 for the Heat. The surplus in point off TO's was around 20. Slight edge in Offensive boards 12-10 which is a good sign. The Heat had an edge if Defensive boards 47-45 but the Pistons took 9 more shots and only shot 34% for the game.

great defensive effort. The Defense kept the Pistons in the game the 1st half.

On Shaq I though Dyess guarded him better than Ben. Ben did a great job fronting Shaq, Sheed seemed to play him straight up but Dyess was all over Shaq denying him the ball.

Just got back to Chicago after driving back from the Palace. Our seats were on the floor behind the Pistons' basket. The automotion sat in front of us, which was pretty cool.

In the 2nd half, it was so loud that you couldn't hear the whistle when it was right in front of you. It was nothing like a regular season game in terms of amplitude. When Lindsay came in the game in the 4th quarter and turned up the D, and Sheed/ Dice started going crazy on the boards and loose balls, it got really nuts. I can truly see why home court is a big deal.

Random observations-
The guys were so loose in the shoot-around that I can't see them being nervous for anything. Dice and Sheed were the clowns. Mo Evans seems pretty nice. He was joking around with some of the little kids in the front row. And Delfino really seemed to be joking around a lot too, which I wouldn't have expected.

In terms of the game, Rip seems impossible to guard up close. Shaq looked skinny. Sheed was harrassing everyone within his 5 foot circle without fouling. These guys play very clean.

Good sign from flip. almost every game I see flip not go to the bench in the fourth even if the starters are playing bad or are tired. He went with the bench and that move helped us win. He is not known for making good adjusments, but he did today and it stopped Wade. We'l truly see if he can change things up in the playoffs. We lost by 2 on the boards, but the effort was there. We missed so many shots, and it's much easier to get a defensive board than an offensive one.

Wade quote- " I misssed some shots that I normally make," Wade says "Thay pressured me and they got away with the things the Pistons normally get away with."

He "gets away" with his fair share. It didn't go his way this time and he's gonna cry about to the press? I thought a lot more of Wade before this. Believe me if the Pistons lost like that last night, and then came out and said something like that, I wouldn't be too pleased either. They lost, fair and square.

Good sign from flip. almost every game I see flip not go to the bench in the fourth even if the starters are playing bad or are tired. He went with the bench and that move helped us win. He is not known for making good adjusments, but he did today and it stopped Wade. We'l truly see if he can change things up in the playoffs. We lost by 2 on the boards, but the effort was there. We missed so many shots, and it's much easier to get a defensive board than an offensive one.

absolutely

Impressive coaching by Flip in the second half to get the team back into the game. He just raised my confidence level up a notch although I'm still concerned about Shaq in the playoffs now. Flip did not force Shaq to play "D" in the post this game. If we do that in the playoffs, Shaq will abuse us.

Can't wait to see how we handle the Dallas game as I believe they might be our stiffest competition with an injured Duncan and a Zo-less Heat.

DETROIT BASKETBALL DEFENSE!!! That's what I'm talking about. Definitely DEFENSE won this game for us.

Enough with all the excuses, MIAMI. We beat you fair and square.

Shaq, what do you mean?"It wasn't really anything they did -- we just made a lot of mistakes and they capitalized."
WTF??? Our DEFENSE causes your team to make such mistakes, bottom line.

Wade, please. "I misssed some shots that I normally make," Wade says "Thay pressured me and they got away with the things the Pistons normally get away with."
WTF??? You should have foul out before the game ends with so many push offs, be realistic

Be more classy after losses, like your coach Riley. "There are no excuses," Riley said. "We played really well in the first half attacking, but I was concerned with the turnovers. In the second half, they just ratcheted up the pressure. They were pressing Shaq, denying Dwyane and we did a very poor job of executing offense against pressure.
"Their defense was fresh, energized, committed," Riley said. "They knew where we were going to go with the ball and they took it away."


With or without Zo, it wouldn't make any difference. Zo play defense in the paint with his shot blocking ability and with the Pistons being a perimeter team, Zo has no impact on us. On his offense, Ben will have no problem covering him. Hell, we can even use Davis to counter him.

Tay, MVP for this game and the past week. Shooting % up, rebounding, dishing, steals and even blocks. If Tay and Sheed can average 12-16 rebounds total in the playoffs, I believe no team can get 2 games out of us. Great D on Wade the entire game. Props to Rip and Hunter.

No matter what excuses the Heat can come up with, hey, the Pistons shot under 30% almost the entire game. Who knows what the score will be like if we shoot more than 40%???

This is good to read. After so many sub par games and a complaint ridden first half, its amazing to see such positive comments regarding the game...especially from the defensive end.

Hopefully they'll keep coming out motivated.

When things looked bad early in the game, I told Slippy "IF they lose this one, I think it really IS finally time to start worrying". But they did what they do.

Biggest victory of the season, if you ask me...if not for the team, at least for the fans (particularly in here) that had a part of them die with each of the recent losses.

We saw the REAL Pistons last night. We may not see them again until playoff time, but in the end, I think they are going to find a way win it all!

HUGE win! Go Pistons!

Definitely DEFENSE won this game for us.

Enough with all the excuses, MIAMI. We beat you fair and square.

Be more classy after losses...



I hope they keep talking that senseless garbage. Same as last year. It only fuels the fire within the Pistons. Just what we need. Lack of respect. Keep it coming.

absolutely

Impressive coaching by Flip in the second half to get the team back into the game. He just raised my confidence level up a notch although I'm still concerned about Shaq in the playoffs now. Flip did not force Shaq to play "D" in the post this game. If we do that in the playoffs, Shaq will abuse us.

Can't wait to see how we handle the Dallas game as I believe they might be our stiffest competition with an injured Duncan and a Zo-less Heat.

I thought we did a bad job of making shaq haurd someone in the first half, but when we had dica and sheed out there shaq couldn't get awayw ith not playing unlike if ben was out there. I thought dice came in and helped us pull it out in the 4th quarter. We still have to see what he does in the playoffs, but it's still good to see him adjust in a big game.

I thought we did a bad job of making shaq haurd someone in the first half, but when we had dica and sheed out there shaq couldn't get awayw ith not playing unlike if ben was out there. I thought dice came in and helped us pull it out in the 4th quarter. We still have to see what he does in the playoffs, but it's still good to see him adjust in a big game.

He had a very good series in the Finals.

Man, I love having Lindsey Hunter on this team. What an insurance policy.

What I found interesting was that D. Wade is no better at stopping dribble penetration than anyone else. Better yet, when driven around Wade committed fouls reaching for the ball. Attacking him might be the best countermove to his aggressiveness.

I'm really glad to see the Stones return to physical defensive basketball again. Even happier to see the officials allow it. Shaq delivered an early shot to Tay and to our credit I thought we turned that mess back on them.

the Heat are in the wind...Bring ONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN the Pacers!:whoo:

Man, I love having Lindsey Hunter on this team. What an insurance policy.

It's the blessed truth!!!!!! :nod: