Thanks to Steve DiLullo for taking my place here at N4S while I’m not able. This Live blog, bullet points and the photos are Steve’s great work from The Pistons big win over Boston.

Pistons-Celtics Live Blog

ESPN poll during the game:
Which team would win a 7 game series on a neutral court?
Results… 74% Celtics, 26% Pistons and only Michigan voted in our favor

Pre-Game:

• John Barry prefers the Pistons 5 to the Celtics 3 and expects is in the ECF
• Doc Rivers wants them to attack us and make it tough for us
• Bill Walton calls KG the Defensive Player of the Year and MVP, and the key to the game
• We’ve won 3 in a row in Boston, and have taken 13 of the last 14 against the Celtics
• Great clips of the “Dump Isiah” rally, all 2 dozen of them, today in NY and Walton rags on the Knicks saying the only good thing for the fans is they get to watch LeBron tonight
• Walton says Garnett’s the only guy out of all the Pistons/Celtics starters he would pick to form a combined starting 5
• John Barry says both teams want each other, have this game marked, are going to go after each other tonight… Hubie agrees

1st Quarter:
11:42 … Pierce misses a wide-open 3 off a Garnett pass from the block.
11:24 … Dyess starts the game with a beautiful swish, 2-0.
11:05 … First in-game reference with stats to the Big 3.
10:24 … Rip for 3! Another good sign to start the game.
10:12 … Defensive 3 second on us… not such a good sign, we don’t usually do that. 5-3.
9:48 … Dyess again right over the top of Perkins, 7-5.
9:13 … Chauncey right over Rondo, he had no chance.
7:39 … So far this is quite the back-and-forth kind of game, everyone’s answering shots. Not much defense at all from either team.
6:59 … Hubie just asked, “Was that Kevin McHale or Rajon Rondo?”
5:40 … 10 points for Rondo already – we aren’t doing anything to stop him – he’s blowing by our guards and getting wide open looks, 11-15.
4:36 … Helluva pass from Billups to Rip for an easy layup – Rip’s got 8 already, 16-17.
3:01 … Sheed bricks another one, he’s 0-4 and not looking right now. First shot of the Celtics Cheerleaders. I’m with Bill Simmons on this one, it’s just not right.
2:27 … Garnett with a baseline drive and layup over Dyess, 16-24 now and we aren’t stopping much.
2:06 … Rip draws a foul and hits both, Hayes in for Tay
1:39 … Big Baby’s fouled twice in a millisecond or something like that, 20-25 Celtics.
0:43 … Announcers just jinxed Chauncey again, 22-27 now and Maxey’s in the game.
0:08 … Rip drains a 3 from the corner, 25-29 after the 1st.
0:00 … Our D hasn’t looked great, Sheed’s almost invisible, Maxey just got into the game, and yet we’re only down 4 – no complaints so far as long as we make some adjustments.

2nd Quarter:
12:00 … Lindsey’s already in the game
11:18 … 4-on-1 break and Jarvis travels – are you kidding me?!? Dyess gets tangled up and lies on the floor for a few, but he looks ok.
10:10 … We’re letting guys get open again and the crowd’s getting into it, 25-34 as Rip hits a fade over Allen to cut the lead, 27-34.
9:17 … Maxey with a monster board under the hoop in traffic!
Timeout … Hilarious new Sportscenter commercial with Garnett/Allen/Pierce
7:45 … We leave Garnett wide open on the break and he drains it, 27-36.
7:08 … Sheed, Lindsey, Afflalo, Maxey, and Jarvis on the floor as Jarvis drains a jumper.
6:37 … Afflalo hits a nice jumper from the top of the key to pull us back within seven, 31-38.
5:58 … Sheed bricks yet another with the clock winding down, he’s now 0-5. Both teams only have 3 turnovers combined – we have 1.
4:49 … Afflalo draws a blocking foul with :01 left on the shot clock… this kid’s a smart player. He hits both free throws and we’re close again, 36-40.
4:19 … Gorgeous behind-the-back pass from Chauncey to Sheed, who bricks yet ANOTHER shot, this time a three.
3:52 … Ba-Ba-Ba-Billups for 3 and we’re within one, 39-40. They just stole from Blaha on the ESPN broadcast, “Don’t look now but the Pistons are within one.”
2:43 … Terrible shot by Hayes and I’m starting to see why Washington fans told us we’d hate nights like this from him.
2:11 … Announcers just pointed out we’re losing in the paint to the tune of 4-20. Doc just picked up a tech as Chauncey hits the freebie.
1:30 … Rondo just beat a 1-on-2 break against Chauncey and Jarvis with the And-1. We can’t stop him. Not the Big 3, but Rajon Rondo who’s got 14 already.Go Figure. 42-50.
0:43 … Finally! Sheed drains a 3 and it’s 45-52. Back and forth again as Jarvis spots up and clanks another long ball. Drive the lane on the break, damn it!
0:00 … 45-52 at the half with Boston shooting 62% in the half. Could sure as hell be better, but could be worse too. We’ve gotta start defending!

Halftime:
Walton’s all over the Pistons for playing 1-on-1 in the first half while Boston was playing team ball
Results from the poll noted with Walton saying we SHOULD win a 7 game series but the way we’re playing Boston would
Knicks are up 9 on the Cavs… hilarious.
MIller commercial on TV made me look this awesomeness up online…

3rd Quarter:
10:53 … Leave Garnett wide open and he’s going to drain it nine times out of ten, 45-54.
10:02 … Dyess with the putback jam off a Chauncey miss… nice!
9:01 … Travel on KG thanks to some helpful (if not all that special) D from Tay
8:37 … Sheed’s becoming upset with what he feels are one-way calls as the teams get a little pushy with each other, especially Allen and Rip
7:35 … Sheed must be channeling his frustrations on the net as he drains a long 3 ball, and we’re close again, 51-56.
6:41 … Chauncey hits a dagger from long ball land, and we’re back within 2 at 54-56.
6:18 … Rondo coughs it up due to some pushing by Chauncey and the crowd’s in a frenzy over the no-call… Dyess turns it back over to Rondo on the other end
4:37 … It’s been 54-56 for what feels like forever.
4:05 … Tay’s not on tonight one bit, he looks downright uncomfortable out there.
3:21 … Rondo reaches in on Chauncey at the line and they give him 3 free throws. The crowd’s a slight bit unpleased and voicing it clearly. He hits all 3 and it’s 59-60.
2:18 … Celtics can’t seem to buy a bucket outside of KG this quarter… of course as I type this Pierce drives for a circus shot and one, misses the FT, Dyess grabs the board, Rondo tips it out of his hands, and then Dyess fouls sending KG to the line for 2 more. 59-63 after all that.
1:35 … Billups draws a nice foul on Rondo (his 4th) and the crowd’s quite thrilled once again… and Tay finally drills one – his first points!
0:35 … Game’s getting a little more physical – this definitely has a playoff feel to it tonight.
0:00 … We won the quarter 16-13, now that’s a Detroit Basketball kind of score. It’s 61-65 with 12 minutes to go. Our defense definitely looked better at times than the first half.

4th Quarter:
11:15 … Lindsey Hunter raises up and drains a long jumper over the defense? I’ll take it.
11:02 … Perkins looks like he went to the Ben Wallace School for Free Throw Shooting
10:13 … Tay just missed one of his signature short jump hooks. I’m tellin you it’s just not his night, even if that shot was over 3 guys.
9:41 … Lindsey for THREE over the defense once again, and we’re up 1!
9:23 … Lindsey steals it, passes to Rip on the break, and the Ripster throws down a two-hand jam to put us up three, 70-67!

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Timeout … Certainly didn’t think I’d ever have three pro-Lindsey comments in one quarter.
8:52 … Here comes Mr. Big Shot with a nice turnaround in the lane to keep us up 3. Afflalo’s out there right now in crunch time and Sheed’s back in for Dyess.
7:51 … We just grabbed 3 nice offensive boards in a row and Maxey killed a baby even if it was after we got whistled for an offensive foul.
6:54 … Chauncey draws Foul #5 on Rondo and goes to the line for 2, which he drains. Three point game, 74-71.
6:42 … Offensive foul on KG and it’s Deeeeetroit Basketballlllllll!
6:21 … NICE turnaround off the glass for Maxey and we’re up 76-71. Sheed grabs a quick offensive board as I type, hurls it up the court to a streaking Billups, and he lays it in to put us up 78-71. Gotta love 4th Quarter Detroit Basketball!
Timeout … ESPN pointed out that we’ve held Boston to all of 19 points in the 2nd half so far.
5:44 … Ray Allen for a serious reverse jam and the crowd’s completely fired up. We’re still up 79-73 though.
5:03 … Foul #5 on Sheed and KG’s at the line. He hits both and it’s a 4 point game. Hubie doesn’t think it’s a foul at all.
4:47 … Chauncey in the post for a fadeaway over Rondo, who can’t do anything to stop him.
4:28 … Allen drains a 3 right over Rip and it’s a three point game. This is an old fashioned shootout down the stretch.
3:33 … Mr. Big Shot! Very long two (foot on the line) and we’re holding on to the lead. He’s got 10 points in the quarter.
2:06 … Sheed just swatted Perkins’ shot like it was a fly on the wall. Awesome defense in the post while playing with five fouls.
Timeout … Cavs are down 21 to the Knicks now, which is something way beyond hilarious.
1:17 … Perkins with a solid block on Tay and the lead holds at six, 85-79.
1:02 … Eddie House for three and it’s a one possession game.
0:34 … My lord that place is rocking!
0:19 … Ray Allen drains a ridiculous three and it’s all tied up.
0:19 … Ummm, that place is way more than rocking. We’ve got the last shot. Can we have some more Rip magic in Beantown?
0:05 … Chauncey drives, turns it over right into KG’s hands, and now they’ve got the last shot. Eeeek!
0:02 … Good defense, Pierce’s shot clanks off the rim, Sheed grabs the board, and we’ve got the last shot – hopefully. Hey, this would work better for Rip’s magic with barely any time left, right?
0:00:10 … Chauncey draws the foul!!! Hits the first. Hits the second…
0:00:00 … GAME OVER! 87-85 Final.

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Post-Game:

• What. A. Finish.
• Mr. Big Shot sure as hell was alive and well tonight, scoring 28 to go with 8 dimes.
• First home loss of the season for Boston. They drop to 20-3 on the season while we improve to 18-7.
• Rip and Chauncey did most of the damage tonight.
• Dyess was solid again putting up a double-double, 13 points and 10 boards.
• Sheed played some great D (13 boards, 2 steals, 1 block) but was off all night going just 3-10 from the field.
• Tay couldn’t get it going at all, finishing with just 2 points on 1-10 shooting.
• All the starters aside from Tay (go figure) were negative in the +/- on the night.
• No Flip, Amir, or the former Bobcats.
• Lindsey Hunter’s box score does not do justice to how important he was when we went on a run to take control of this game early in the 4th quarter. Within two minutes he hit a long jumper, drained a 3, and stole it away before passing it to Rip for a dunk.
• Afflalo looked good when he was on the floor, and his +3 for the night is a good indicator.
• No thunder dunks for Maxiell but he had a couple great plays in the lane and finished a game-best +11.
• Ray Allen can certainly hit the clutch three and was active all over the floor, with 24 and 3-of-5 on long ones.
• Garnett put up a relatively quiet 26 (if there is such a thing) with a good portion of his points coming on spot-up midrange jumpers on the break and in transition.
• Our defense was pretty bad in the first half (I think a 7 point deficit at the half was quite lucky) but we finally pulled things together and locked down in the fourth.
• Rajon Rondo? Didn’t think he’d be the one torching us in the first half but we clamped down on him after the break. All 14 of his points came before halftime and Chauncey drew some key fouls on him in the third and fourth.
• Relatively quiet bench play from both teams, but our bench won the battle 14-5.
• Rebound war lost 34-37.
• No techs for Rip or Sheed!
• Great statement game this early in the season. It felt like a playoff game all night long, especially down the stretch. We had plenty of issues and were outplayed early on but made the right adjustments to come out and take one from the (formerly) last team undefeated at home in the NBA. Awesome game for the Pistons.

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Thanks go out to everyone with their kind words, it’s nice to know my family here at N4S has got by back….. Natalie