The Dallas Mavericks ended the Pistons 5 game winning streak Sunday afternoon at The Palace 92-88. The Pistons were with ought all star point guard Chauncey Billups who is listed as day to day with a groin pull. Flip Murray who started in Chauncey’s place led the team with 18 points.
Key Points:
- This one was close but the Mavs pulled away late in the fourth and the Pistons couldn’t answer.
- Blame this one on missed free throws down the stretch. Rip missed some late in the fourth that could have kept us close. He was an uncharacteristic 2-for-7 from the line.
- As a team the Pistons were 13 for 21 from the line while the Mavs went 24-29.
- I am told that Mark Cuban stood up in the closing minute of the game, faced the Pistons crowd and hollered, “Western Conference Defense,” Mason style. I wish it was on tape so we could mock it just like the stunt the Cavs pulled.
- The Pistons did a great job shutting down Dirk in the first half but he caught fire in the second and ended the night with 28.
- The Pistons scoring came from everyone. All starters were in double figures.
- Detroit was 3-for-13 from downtown.
- They just couldn’t hit their shots in the fourth.
- Despite the loss they looked good, especially their defense.
- Who needs to have home court advantage, this team likes to play better on the road.
- The Pistons need to find that killer instinct again, the one that helps them close out games and win.
- Maybe fatigue set in a bit, the starters played heavy minutes and Flip went with a 7 man rotation.
- My friend Max misses the good old days when we had the firepower to blow teams out at will. I have to agree with that one.
- Flip again did a good job filling in for Chauncey. He led the team with 18 points, 6 assists and 4 steals.
- The Pistons were out rebounded 30-39.
- Sheed continues to take his defense very seriously, blocking 3 shots against Dallas.
- At one point the Pistons led by 10, but the they quickly let the Mavs back in with a 6-0 run.
- Delfino and Murray’s new found confidence will help us immensely come playoff time.
- I can’t say enough good things about McDyess. He was 7-for-10 from the floor with 17 points and carried the team for stretches.
- Rip received, I believe, his 12th technical foul of the regular season (correct me if I’m wrong).
- I am still floored with how many crucial free throw the Pistons missed.
- Devin Harris had his way, he put up 22.
- Sheed scored 13 with 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks. I just wish he got a better look on those threes he put up in the closing seconds of the game.
Mark Cuban should not be allowed to travel with the team, he is an abbaresment to NBA basketball. David is hard on the players well he should be just as hard on the owners. He is not perfessional at all the NBA should be tests on someone who wants to invest in the NBA becuase he is nuts. He should not be allowed to sit with the team since he is only an owner not a player (even know he thinks he is) or a coach (which I am surprised that he has not done yet). Even Grandpa Bill made comments in an interview about how he conducts business and how he makes the NBA look.
Anyway we should have had this game but our guys did play well except when they let dallas go on a 6-0 run thats where we lost it. Tis team is a good road team and we did beat dallas in there house so this win does not make me afraid of the finals. I do love how everyone still thinks it will be the heat or cavs in the end. During the pre show they said sheed asked if they were still counting them out. funny just the way they like it and sheed is playing his best this way, going back to the D.
Anyway chauncey wouldn’t say he was going to stay with detroit and that if he left he excected to be bood I really hope he does not leave but you never know what is going to happen we all thought ben would stay no matter what. Also what about the cat thing kinda funny fearing cats but I guess the alley cats can be mean.
Well I like what I see in Flip and I hope that when hunter is back that he does not bench him again, he has really stepped up when everyone but him counted him out. He can do well for us in the playoffs if we don;t give up on him. OUr bench well Flip, Dice and carlos are playing like they want the ring and I like that cause that was a problem last yr.
mann what a gameee i thought it was great !!!
but what did rip get a tech for??? i missed that part
but if things stay the way they are.. dallas has to play the golden state warriors first round in the playoffs.. and im hoping theyll knock them out because theres just something that team is doing that dallas cant seem to handle !
alsooooooo i REALLY think jason maxiell needs to have more playtime .. i really think he can make a difference and bring in energy ! i dont see why flip isnt playing him.. he needs to get him ready for the finals .. i guarantee you we’re gonna need ALL the talent this team has !!! j max included !
regardless of the loss i think the psitons did GREAT until the fourth quarter.. they literally had me on the ground cheering! i was so excited! but i felt bad for rip when he started bleeding! and i hope chaunceys back in soon!
btw did anyone else think he was looking extra handsome tonight? ;]
i just noticed we only have 18 games left.. this season has gone by sooo fast.. from the beginning struggling to find a path and keep a name without ben to getting a blessing with chris webber and his beautiful passes.. now its time for the playoffs .. i think we’re readyyy !!!
Go Pistons!!!!!!!!
Here’s how I see it.
The loss was disappointing, but…
~ We hung in there pretty darn well without our team’s MVP. Wonder how Dallas would do without Dirk? (Probably about the same as Phoenix did without Nash.)
~ Other players are staring to step up. Our bench is strong. It will pay off.
~ We split the season with both Dallas and Phoenix. Both losses were pretty close. The wins were not.
~ Mark Cuban should be fined for that remark. The players don’t get away with taunting the crowd, why should he. It should have actually been a technical.
~ This will be a motivator. Expect our boys to come out strong down the stretch.
Who else LOVED that monster block on Nowitzki compliments of SHEED. And I was a flip hater, but I strongly believe after his performance for Billups he earned a spot in our rotation
Rip got a tech for I believe on offensive charge. I just remember he knocked Devin Harris down and both of them fell to the floor and Rip complained. IMO not enough to warrent a Tech but whatever…
And I also think Max should have played more minutes. I think late in the fourth Flip should have put him in to get a momentum changing dunk/block or at least go to the line. He can make a difference for this team.
It’s funny despite the loss I can’t really complain about much, especially with Chauncey out, but the missed free throws killed us.
in the fourth, rip missed 5 out of 6 free throws and sheed missed 3 straight shots. other than those things, we easily won this game, even without chauncey.
josh howard didn’t look like he could compete with any of our starting 5, his defense is way overrated; mcdyess totally had his way all game, webber was completely unguardable, dirk couldn’t guard rasheed or webber; jason terry looked like a totally average point guard. devin harris was probably their best player… so what i’m saying is:
Bring these fools on in the NBA Finals, and we will expose them just like we did with those lame Lakers a few years ago!
Rip didn’t knock Devin Harris down the guy clearly flopped even the analysis said so, but it was a great game. I wish we could have won. Yeah Rip missed some key free throws and Sheed missed that three which would have made it a 1 point game I believe, but thankfully Flip stepped up. Its dissappointing because it seemed like we had this game in the bag in my opinion from the beginning. Then the second half started and they quickly lost that 4 pts lead and then they tightened up and then they lost it again. I cool with it though, but its time to put it behind us and get this next win and start out next streak. I think we can take Houston and San Antonio even though it will be a test. CLEVELAND FANS REALLY DISLIKE DETROIT AND I DON’T KNOW WHY.
ehh what a bummer. if they won this game they would be the most feared team in the nba for sure. maybe number one in the power rankings on nba.com
oh well. i hope rip is okay he took quite a beating today.
and as for mark cuban, he has to start acting like a classy team owner, not just an annoying fan that you want to throw your beer at. lol my mom met him in the airport in toronto a couple months ago. she took a picture with him. she said hes nice, but i think hes EVIL!!!
i feel pistons injuries comin on. this betta get betta.
mark cuban could’ve started another brawl involving fans at the palace today. and great game i dont are we lost because we can easily take this team there were tons of shto clock violations and we had tons of steals that proves how good our defense is and how bad their offense is.
This is what the NBA finals should be. Dirk is the complete opposite of Sheed, but I like them both.
Dirk is a dork, but a nice dork.
Sheed is not afraid to laugh at himself.
I rather watch Dallas versus Detroit than Miami versus whatever.
Please don’t make me watch the flippy flop-flop Dwyane Flop again.
And how the other center gets whistled whenever Fat Shaq elbows them. Fatso’s elbows ought to be declared offensive fouls.
mark cuban is a veryyyy immature sore loser and winner
if hes losing he whines.. if hes winning he rubs it in .. NOT CLASSY either way .. grow up!
buttttttttt the pistons did GREAT today .. man did u see all those steals??? they were like one after the other.. and i LOVED it when sheed and dice blocked dirk at the same time and they were like who does the block go to ?!?!?
but rip did take a beating today.. not just with the elbow in the face but imean altogheter… ESPECIALLY in the 4th quarter .. he was willing to do anything to win !
thats why i love the pistons :]
haha Fatso… I thoroughly enjoyed this game but I’m sure I would have liked it much more if it were a W. I hope Rip is okay. I had to look away when the camera got a close up shot. Blood…eww! I hope Chauncey will be back in soon, too. Only 3 more games without Hunter. (right? I think so anyway…) Mark Cuban is a dumbass. I like how ‘Sheed got a tech the other night for saying “come on” or something like that to the crowd yet an owner talks crap and gets nothing. Oh well, here’s to the Pistons game verse Philly. Cheers!
I agree, we played well without our floor leader. Two things I believe really hurt us:
1)Obviously the missed free throws which would of had us in the lead late in the 4th
2) No help defense for the most part – Whenever Harris or Dirk beat their man, they had a clear path to the basket. I noticed that in the Phoenix game as well. I remember Ben always ran from where he was to challenge that layup. We need to get back to that.
Is Harris the king of flopping or what? He flops more than Rodman did (but not as good). Everytime someone touched him he was leaping backward.
As for Mark Cuban, I wouldn’t worry about anything he says. His team has choked in the playoffs for how many years now? He’s just upset about Sheed’s comments on dirk.
-Nate
I haven’t watched the game yet but I will soon as I got home.. Is there anything worth celebrating for Dallas? Mr. Big Shot did not play yet the game was close. If these two teams meet in the finals ( and there is a big possibility that it will happen ) they will be skinned alive.
It will be interesting down the stretch. The records “favor” Cleveland who are only 1.5 behind by playihng “easier” teams. Their remaining games are with teams with winning records of 6-10; while our Pistons play teams whose winning records are 9-8. But I think our Pistons can make a final push with statement games coming up again Houston, San Antonio, Cleveland, Chicago and Miami. Besides, I take heart in the Tigers who lost first place on the last day but were the ones in the World Series (OK–we won’t talk about how we lost because when the Pistons get to the FInals, they will win it this year!).
Sorry–sould have spell checked–it is playing, not playihng (where did that come from); and it is games coming up against–not again.
Yikes–did it again. It is should, not sould. Sorry.
i am a freaking retart. i will never speak again.
there are truly no words for how galactically stupid i am. i apologize to anyone i have ever spoken to for whatever stupid thing i probably said.
If Chauncy Billups played we would have won! Just like we did IN dallas!
the eastern conference road records should be the best sign for the pistons that we are getting to the finals this year.
i think our only real competition is the heat and cavs… but the heat without wade and the cavs road record (15-17), not to mention who on either of those teams can guard rip OR chauncey. damon jones? jason williams? don’t even bring up gary payton! the truth is unquestionable that the pistons starting 5 is far better than either of those teams, and our benches are better too. Chicago is the best team to match up against us 7 players deep, but their youth and ben gordon’s ballhoggery is going to keep them out of the conference finals.
so we make the finals. give it a 75% likelihood.
the chances that the mavs make it has to be at least 60%, given homecourt advantage, great depth, great coaching, and great dirk. i give the suns and spurs each 15% chance of making it, and the other 10% split between jazz and rockets … but let’s be honest, the NBA finals is going to be detroit in dallas.
2 games in dallas.
3 in detroit.
2 more in dallas.
this past game showed us that we match up great with these guys, even better with chauncey shutting down devin stinking harris, and chris webber is going to end this dream season with an NBA finals MVP.
pistons in 5.
I think the greatest thing about this game was the total dominance of points in the paint which for detroit is normally a problem. but when sheed plays inside especially against inferior defenders the pistons are unstoppable. Now dont get me wrong sheed is the reason i started really being a total pistons fan and he really can hit threes but he is fucking 7feet tall(i know he is actually 6’11 but close enough)!!! and he can shoot FTs and he can pass so when he plays like a big and not a guard they are unstoppable!! when they were making dallas look like little kids out there in the first half that was a big part of it but in the second especially at the end of the game he started hanging out by the three line and forcing shoots.
Like I said “DONT GET ME WRONG” sheed is the reason i am actually pasionate about any nba team and if were talking defense he is at the heart of it but on offense he needs to play big and at least not take the clutch 3s at the end of the game. If that had happened we would have won and if chauncey was playing (for his D cause flip played about a chauncey level of O) and RIP was on point with the FTs along with sheed playing big it would have been a total blowout.
oh yea the points in the paint was 44-28
Not that it matters in the long run, but I did not post the 12:26 PM or the 12:27 PM blogs. I am sure for some people, ridiculing others brings them great joy. In generally, you will notice the grammatical and spelling mistake of those 2 posts and realize, if I did them, I would have corrected myself. Perhaps that is why some post anonymously to avoid these situations, but to that person or persons that posted under my name, glad to share it with you, but at least sound more educated in the future.
despite all the love im getting on the blog comments, let me explain my “taunting”
first, let me say Im a huge sheed fan and he knows it. So i check out this blog now and then
2nd. I did say “western conference defense ” to the crowd. And if you do see a video of it, you will see they were all laughing. Why ?
because a big chunk of the game, the guys behind me, someone said it was the Mayor, were yelling at us ” Eastern Conference Defense” when the Pistons would get a big stop.
Which we all took as fun. And when we got the stop to end the game, i said the same thing back.
Thats what makes the games fun.
And for those of you who think an owner should just sit in a box. Feel free to buy a team and do just that.
Me, I love the NBA and the Mavs and its a whole lot more fun getting in to the games.
m
The last couple of games I’ve noticed that rip wasn’t getting a lot of touches and I believe that was the underlying factor for the missed free throws, just not touching the ball enough. I think that’s worrying me about Tayshaun too.
Not gonna hate but I believed that all I needed was a couple good games from flip to make me like him. While I like him better still I don’t even want to watch him score or anything. That being said I was impressed with what he did the last couple of games, better stint than the first one.
The Sheed Dice block on Dirk was Sheed-Dice-enominal. And I think Delfino got an awesome block on Terry before the half (though he wasn’t credited (Let me know if i’m right or wrong)
Carlos needs to hit those runaway layups other than that doing so much better (Waiting for another monster dunk) Defense is as amazing as always.
Need For Maxiell Dale GOON SQUAD and throw in a little Dupree maybe?
We have a good chance to win this year. I still think San Antonio’s coming out the west and their defense does scare me a little
So, waht’s the chance of MC really posting that comment to this site? Would be cool if he did, but, kind of hard to believe. The story is believable though.