The Detroit Pistons have been one of the NBA's best road teams in recent years, but it hasn't helped them at Madison Square Garden.

The Pistons (18-8) try for their sixth straight win as they face the Knicks (12-18) on Wednesday.

Detroit has won 10 of its last 12 games against the Knicks, with the 10 wins coming by an average margin of 11.3 points. Most of the success has come at home, however, with the Pistons just 7-20 at Madison Square Garden since 1991.

The Pistons are looking to extend their five-game winning streak following a 92-91 victory over the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday. Chauncey Billups, who was 1-of-10 from the floor, made two free throw with 7.2 seconds to give his team the lead and its 15th win in 18 games.

``I love games like this,'' Billups said. ``Even though I struggled, it's great to be in games that you know are going down to the wire and that someone's going to have to make a play.''

Billups' free throws might not have mattered without Rasheed Wallace's crucial defensive play afterward. Wallace forced New Jersey's Vince Carter to miss a pull-up jumper with 1.5 seconds left when the duo crashed into one another. The referees, though, did not call a foul as Detroit escaped with the win.

Wallace wasn't even supposed to be guarding Carter, but rotated defensively after Tayshaun Prince tripped.

``Sheed made an unbelievable play there,'' Pistons coach Flip Saunders said. ``Tay goes down, and they've got one of the premier scorers in the league at the top of the key with no one guarding him. You generally don't want to be playing 5-on-4 with a one-point lead and five seconds to go.''

Detroit is the Eastern Conference's only team with a winning road record (9-5). Although the Pistons have historically struggled at Madison Square Garden, they have won three of their last five there against the short-handed Knicks, who are coming off Saturday's 98-77 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers that ended a season-high three-game winning streak.

Jamal Crawford scored 21 points, but the fatigue from playing four games - including two overtime wins - in six nights was too much to overcome.

``We didn't have enough gas in the tank,'' coach Isiah Thomas said. ``I was concerned we might be flat and we were flat.''

New York shot 42 percent from the field, committed 20 turnovers and the 77 points were a season low - almost 22 below its season average.

``They gave me as much as they could,'' said Thomas, who has been forced to shuffle his lineup the past few days because of injuries and suspensions. ``I'm not mad or upset.''

Although the team was playing without Mardy Collins, Jared Jeffries and Nate Robinson - all suspended - and the injured Quentin Richardson (back spasms), Steve Francis returned to the lineup. Francis, who missed the previous eight games with tendinitis in his right knee, had nine points and two assists in just over 16 minutes.

This is the second meeting between the teams this season. Chauncey Billups had 22 points and 16 assists in a 108-100 win by the Pistons on Dec. 1, while Eddy Curry led New York with 24 points.

Following Wednesday's game, the Knicks begin a five-game road trip on Friday against the Phoenix Suns.



Link (http://www.nba.com/games/20061227/DETNYK/preview.html)

hopefully this isn't a let down game.......i think the bench really needs to rebound (NPI) from the poor showing last night.

looks like the starters are taking the night off.

http://www.leenite.org/jonisland/graphics/dukakis.jpg

I can't believe that we are losing to these guys.

http://www.leenite.org/jonisland/graphics/dukakis.jpg

I can't believe that we are losing to these guys.

back to back vs New York on the road after Jesus B-day party.

League - Game.

But we could beat Jesus and his 19 apostles in a back to back this year.

We're ungodly in B2Bs.

But we could beat Jesus and his 19 apostles in a back to back this year.

We're ungodly in B2Bs.

It's not over. The Knicks are playing down to our tempo of sloth for the most part.

I'm just shitting around, I still think we'll win.

110-104

Flip Murray: 4 Minutes, 0/1, 0 PTS, 0 RB, 0 AST, 3 TO, 3 PF

Ouch.

Fuck a Knick

Delf!!!!! From waaaaayyyyy ouuutttt for the Tie. :)

Overtime!

didnt even touch rim.[smilie=rip.gif]

DELFINO BABY!!!!! hits a clutch game tying 3 under 5 seconds to send it to OT!!!!!

to recap the game thus far, rip has been awesome, delfino has been great, dice has been fantastic, and mostly everyone else has been so-so or poor. prince got a BS technical.

we are sleepwalking out there. let's hope we take control in OT. i don't like that our starters will have to log extra minutes- except for sheed who fouled out.

delfino opens OT with another jumper! let's hope this is the confidence building game he's needed. 16 for him so far! :)

flip murray showed once again why he should not play AT ALL. i'd rather blalock (who made a few nice plays) and delfino in there.

we may be headed for a second OT maybe at this rate.

flip murray showed once again why he should not play AT ALL. i'd rather blalock (who made a few nice plays) and delfino in there.
dont be so hard on him. I didnt like the move to get him, but he's here now. If we can move him, cool. If not he's great insurance in injury.

Double overtime!

holy shit!

i just got back from a movie, thinking the game would be over..........chauncey at the line!

134-130 w/ 17 seconds left.....Knicks ball!

Rip has 49 points!?!??!?!

We'sa gonna win?

Whoa, Channing Frye hit a LONG two.......thought that was a three pointer at first.

Rip hits his first FT for 50 points! Blaha is beside himself :D

Matt check the rebroadcast. its a great game.

SHIT........the shot and the foul :(

that was a foul? billups was damn near running away from him to avoid him and he kicks billups to get a foul. wtf?

another overtime???!!!!!!!! WTF

WTF HAPPENED?!

I don't have whatever channel this is on...

OMG, huge shot by channing frye.

3OT, baby!!!

WTF HAPPENED?!

I don't have whatever channel this is on...

Channing Frye hit another long two, assist from Crawford.

Chauncey split his FTs, which could have iced the game had he hit both.

billups misses a clutch FT attempt to allow the knicks to tie it at the buzzer- TRIPLE OT!

ridiculous. we really don't want to win this one.

hell, is one win really worth this much trouble? we're killing our guys out there with the minutes played. we've got indiana the day after tomorrow and our guys are killing themselves out there.

matt can u get me a radio feed?

strange that FlipS pulled Nazr out and put in Dice for the last defensive play. Dice's man was Frye :(

Rip could go for 60.....?

Its on tvu right now and i hate channig frye...

but i would disagree- how is flip 'great insurance' if we have an injury? he's a greedy, turnover prone sloppy player.

i hate his game. i think delfino is much better.

TAY WITH THE TIP IN

WHO THE FUCK WAS GUARDING CURRY...dumbass foul by delfino

but i would disagree- how is flip 'great insurance' if we have an injury? he's a greedy, turnover prone sloppy player.


Who doesn't play defense, at that.

matt can u get me a radio feed?

shit, sorry man.....i don't have a cable to hook it up :(

fucking TVU does not work for me! AHH DAMNIT

game's slipping away from the Pistons right now.....144-139 Knicks

HAmitlon is tired. Damn he cant hit his jumper...

FUCK FUCK FUCKITTY FUCK FUCK.

WTF JAMAL CRAWFORD. Wheres the help defense by Nazr. You know they arent going to do a pick and roll fuck

need a bucket here, desperately

i hate tripple OTs...we always lose them :(

Nazr w/ the tip in!!

144-141

can flip not see that billups, rip, prince and mohammed all have heavy legs out there? sub SOMEONE in just to sit them for a minute.

they're forcing up bad, lazy shots because they don't have the energy to work for better shots.

we're making the knicks look like a title contender FCOL! this is pathetic.

we will deserve to lose, assuming that's what this turns into. down 5 in 3rd OT. we don't have enough to mount a comeback IMO. both billups and rip in particular look DEAD.

Crazy game, wish I could see it. Boy does ESPN gamecast rock though :puke:

There we go NAzr. Get Tay in the post more against Lee

Nazr nails both FTs!!! he's huge in the third OT.

Pistons down 144-143, 1:33 left

I love NAZR !!!!! :D

NAZR HIT BOTH FREE THROWS!!!

I see Maxiell's only played 3 minutes so our other bigs are dogged. Nice, Flip.

JAMAL IS SUCH BLLSHIT

god damn it billups

CHAUNCEY WWTFFFF FUUUUUUUCCCCCCKKKK

chauncey going for the home run :(

bad decision by chauncey he hasnt hit shit all game, i mean we all know he can hit that but he hasnt all game, he should have passed to Tay or RIP

FOUL ON HAMILTON COME THE FUCKON

Game over

fucking techs fuck why didnt u make those free throws billups why

fuck, man.

Rip did get hammered like three times going to the hole. we all told vince to STFU when he was crying for a foul, but that was a buzzer beater and a fadeaway jumper. vince had a clear look at the shot. Rip had a layup and was hammered multiple times and ended up not even hitting the rim on the shot attempt. that sucked.

Shit, looks like we threw this one away.

Billups and Tay 3/16 from 3 point land. Seems like our calm and collected guys didnt make the best decisions tonight. Sad we wasted the effort on 3 OTs.

fuck the refs man if that was wade , frye would have got a flagrant foul, ejection and fined. and wade gets those 2 free throws

i'm really disappointed that Chauncey chucked that three. he was at the top of the key, waiting for the offense to set up and run. instead of waiting for Rip to curl and let the play develop, he chucks a three from a few steps behind the arc. poor, poor decision.

cross, i'm sorry but i'm going to have to ask you to stop posting here. that picture is literally driving me crazy. i can't stop watching it and gawking at it.

man, i need a girl in the worst way right now. no joke.

I don't blame the refs. I blame Saunders. He knew that this was a f&%king back to back yet he played the starters too much. They looked so tired at the end of regulation yet he kept playing them. We needed energy off of the bench but didn't really see it other than Delfino and Dice. Our coach sucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!

somewhere distant, i can hear Lawrence Frank's punk ass snickering.

wow, i just saw in the postgame that Delfino hit the three to send it into the first OT. NICE!

why did Max just play 2 minutes in a tripple OT game?

I didn't watch the game, but how does Jason Maxiell only get 3 minutes in a Triple Overtime game? Please tell me he blew his knee out or something for that to happen!!!

Matt check the rebroadcast. its a great game.
wish i could stay up to watch it :(

i only watched the last few OTs, but Maxiell only playing 3 minutes is just wrong, after hs recent performances.

why did Max just play 2 minutes in a tripple OT game?

He played like $hit, that's why.

yeah but come on- 3 minutes? he should've been given another chance to go back in.

he wasn't that bad. if that's the standard then flip murray shouldn't play the rest of the year. he has tons of performances where he sucks from start to finish, yet for some reason we keep putting him back in.

anyway we deserved to lose. billups threw the game away twice. plus rip fouled out marbury with a horrible flop. i hate seeing that, even when it helps us. and it really did help us.

so it's fitting that we would get robbed at the end by a no-call.

Pin this one on Chauncey Billups. How do you foul Marbury on a 3 when you're up by 3? Just put your hands up and contest that shit. Also, the hack on Crawford for the and 1 and the end of 2OT was a huge mental lapse. Launching the 3 in 3OT was a terrible decision. We gotten 4 easy points going to the rack on the two previous possessions. For all the clutch shots the guy hits, he sure does have a lot of brain farts.

We had like 4 chances to win this game and blew them all. I'm going to chalk it up to fatigue and move on but I'm not happy about it.

I'll chalk it up to arroganceand stupidity. Of course why the bad fouls at the end. Just let these chucking crackheads shoot the ball. WTF on the 3 pointer Billups and wtf on trying a 3 when you're down 1. That is his by far worst habit for me. just get the lead knucklehead.[smilie=jefffoster.:

I'll chalk it up to arroganceand stupidity. Of course why the bad fouls at the end. Just let these chucking crackheads shoot the ball. WTF on the 3 pointer Billups and wtf on trying a 3 when you're down 1. That is his by far worst habit for me. just get the lead knucklehead.[smilie=jefffoster.:

come on , Billups was open from 28 feet, if they are going to give him that shot I say take it.

Signed, Antoine Walker.

Yeah, Chauncey really hurt us this game. Stupid 3s (would still have been stupid shots if he made them), horrible foul and a missed FT. Everyone one else was really, really good. Nazr and Dice were a force, Rip is obvious, Delfino was all over the court.

They had our D figured out pretty good though. Tayshaun they kept forcing a switch on Tay's guy, leaving Tay to guard a speedy PG. That ended in a lay-up 90% of the time (by a conservative estimate).

And Maxiel did play really pooryl. David Lee made him look foolish twice on pick and rolls. And he wasn't going to get thrown back out during the OT periods, especially with the bigs playing well. For once, I agreed with Flip's subs.

I know it's incredibly unfair timing, but I have to wonder if Rip is more valuable to us than Chauncey. I don't think he is, but at least you know what you're getting from him and he won't lose games for you. Chauncey can win them, but can also lose them. It's tough to have a guy like that, but I guess it's all part of having a superstar on the roster.

Smooth will redeem himself in the very next game.

Nash is paying him Taxes.

That call at the end was total BS, but like you guys said, we should have won the game long before. Billups missed a key FT, Sheed and Nazr missed open dunk attempts, etc. We gave the game away. I also thought we settled for jump shots a lot even though the entire overtime (well %90 of them) we played with a small lineup of Nazr/Prince/Delfino/Rip/Billups and they went big with Curry/Frye/Lee/Jeffries/Crawford(after Marbury fouled out). We barely took them off the dribble at all, and it was NEVER Billups. RIP and Tay drove, but that is it. Billups did not manage the game well in the OT's at all.

Delfino played really well and so did Nazr. Crawford was amazing for them after Marbs fouled out and hit a ton of very difficult shots. Our zone worked well to stop their dribble penetration, but we took too long to go to it (the last OT I think). Flip should have tried that sooner IMO.

Chauncey lost this game for us bar none- between bad fouls, bad decisions on the offense end, bad shooting and non clutch free throws. I'm sure he'll rebound, but this was an awesome game and I would have really liked to see us take it- at least for the sake of guys like delfino who played tougher than ever.