GAME 6
Pistons 91
Heat 66
AUBURN HILLS – Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals played out as predicted last night: Dwyane Wade didn’t dress and the Heat didn’t have a chance.
No Wade, no way. Not on the Pistons’ homecourt, with the defending champions facing elimination, not with the Heat’s offense turnover-prone and out of sync in failing to reach 70 points in Detroit’s 91-66 Game 6 slaughter.
It’s down to tomorrow night for the Eastern Conference championship, Game 7, with Wade or without him at Miami’s American Airlines Arena. With the entire season on the line, expect Wade, suffering from a rib strain, to at least suit up tomorrow. Either way, it’s going to be wild on South Beach for the rights to play in San Antonio on Thursday in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
The Palace of Auburn Hills rocked with noise during the Pistons’ rout, even if the loudest roar was spent on Detroit legend Bob Seger. Detroit soared to a 29-point lead, 80-51, with 7:40 left. Richard Hamilton was superb with 24 points, as the Pistons converted Miami turnovers into fast-break buckets.
Last night’s signature Piston moment came when Miami’s Keyon Dooling drove and had his shot blocked by Ben Wallace. Richard Hamilton, on the break, lobbed an alley-oop to Lindsay Hunter for a layup and 67-45 lead with 1:19 left in the third. Detroit led by 23 entering the fourth, 68-45.
The Heat wore their alternate black uniforms, but Wade wore a black dress shirt on the bench. An hour before tip-off, Wade took warm-up shots, looking in discomfort. Wade wanted to give it a go, but the Heat medical staff nixed it.
Resting Wade to have him healthier for tomorrow’s potential Game 7 in Miami was likely a factor.
“Our medical staff will decide that,” Miami coach Stan Van Gundy said before the decision was reached. “[But] to assume we can go home and get a win is wrong thinking. You don’t give one away.”
Van Gundy also knew if Wade was too limited, there would have been no point in his playing.
“If he’s really hampered and can’t get down the floor, it’s not better [to have him play],” Van Gundy said.
The Heat committed 11 turnovers in the first half to fall behind 44-32. Without having to worry about Wade’s lively penetrations, the Pistons stuck to a ferocious man-to-man defense that befuddled the sloppy Heat. When Miami did get open looks, Eddie Jones kept clanking them, shooting 1 of 9 in the half.
The Pistons came out firing from the perimeter to open the second half and built a 19-point lead after Hamilton, Billups (3-pointer) and Hamilton again and drained back-to-back-to-back bombs for a 53-34 lead with 8:02 left.
Capitalizing on the Heat’s turnover madness, the Pistons got out on the fastbreak and took off on a 13-0 run that erased a 20-19 Heat lead and gave Detroit control at 32-20 with 5:16 left in the half. Detroit scored 13 fastbreak points in the first half, to Miami’s 2.
Rasual Butler, starting for Wade, came alive, scoring nine first-half points, his bucket on a running drive getting Miami within 32-29. But Detroit busted out again. The Pistons took a 12-point lead into halftime on Rasheed Wallace’s 3-pointer off a Hamilton feed with 1.5 seconds left.
Without his partner, O’Neal wasn’t dominant, logging 11 points by halftime.
