Blazers @ Pistons PREVIEW Portland Trail Blazers (15-14) @ Detroit Pistons (18-13) Previous Game Hornets 99 @ Pistons 108 Blazers 91 @ Nets 87 Streaks Pistons: Won 2 Portland: Won 1 Head Coaches Maurice Cheeks/Larry Brown Probable Starters Damon Stoudamire/Chauncey Billups Jeff McInnis/Richard Hamilton Rasheed Wallace/Tayshaun Prince Zach Randolph/Ben Wallace Dale Davis/Mehmet Okur 6th Men Wesley Person/Corliss Williamson Players to focus on Randolph: 23.4 points, 11.4 rebounds Wallace: 9.6 points, 13.00 rebounds, 1.80 steals, 3.23 Blocks Injury Lists Blazers Derek Anderson Travis Outlaw Pistons Hubert Davis Lindsey Hunter Darvin Ham Keys To The Game Blazers Guard Billups on the arc,don't let him get easy looks Attack the basket by getting the Pistons big men in foul trouble Use the power of Randolph and Wallace inside to their advantage Crash the boards Don't settle for outside shots Pistons Try and contain Zach Randolph Keep Ben Wallace out of foul trouble when guarding Z-bo Billups to attack and kick,hit the open shots by staying hot from deep Try and lock them down on defense Get good support from the bench.Corliss Williamson,Bob Sura,Chucky Atkins Allnet's prediction Pistons by 3 Purely because it is at home and the fact Blazers have struggled on the road.Being without their starting shooting guard hurts.If Wallace plays in the post more then Pistons could be in trouble.Randolph will get his but if they don't stop players like Damon Stoudamaire then the Blazers will win their 2nd straight road game.The confidence after beating Hornets should be up there and to try and win their 3rd straight game.Sorry the preview was so short for this game...Didn't have time to write a full one.
How about Ben Wallace on that bum ankle the other night? That guy embodies what the whole team is about, working hard and doing what it takes to win. They need offense from somewhere, though. It's about time Prince put up some bigger numbers, so I'll predict he'll have a big night. Pistons by 6.
I got to go with the Pistons on this one. They've been playing outstanding team ball lately, despite their lack of W's. I expect a great game from Richard Hamilton, Big Ben Wallace and Chauncey Billups. They should make the game interesting and fun to watch IMO. Pistons by 8.
I feel Detroit'll win, they seem to have a better lineup for both defensive and offensive purposes. What worries me is man to man position defense and offense is used. Think of the things Rasheed would do to Tayshaun. It truly will be a battle for rebounds between Zach and Ben, Detroit will come on top for certain if Ben is in an offensive mood and hot to boot. With the way Okur's playing, it'll be fun to see him and Davis go at it. Stoudamire can't handle Billups, he's gone stale, Rip will probably outdo McInnis on the offensive end. My first prediction, Detroit by 7.
This game will be very interesting to say the least. The Blazers do have the personell to give the Pistons fits. IMO, this game will be decided on the play of Ben Wallace against the up and coming phenom, Zach Randolph. I have a feeling that Prince will have a huge night tonight. With his shooting range as well as his ability to get to the basket because of lanky body, I think he will eat Rasheed up on the offensive end.
I also think that the Pistons will win this game. After the win against the Hornets, the crowd and the players will be full of energy. If the fans get into the game early, and the players don't come out shooting 15% the Pistons should cruise to a win and hopefully get a real winning streak going. Pistons by 5.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Detroit Pistons 78 Portland Trail Blazers 71 Chauncey Billups scored 22 points and Ben Wallace added 10 points and 15 rebounds, leading Detroit to a 78-71 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday. "We're finally starting to take some strides and develop a personality," Billups said. "We're finding out how to play Pistons basketball again." Detroit started December with seven losses in 11 games before rallying to win the final three. Detroit also got 13 points from Richard Hamilton. Corliss Williamson added 12 points and a season-high 10 rebounds off the bench. "I'm thrilled with this game," Pistons coach Larry Brown said. "We couldn't make a shot for most of the game, but we hung in there and played outstanding defense. We just kept plugging away." Portland, which set a season low for points, dropped to 1-11 on the road despite 17 points from Rasheed Wallace and 16 points and 14 rebounds from Zach Randolph. </div> Recap Box Score Looks like a good win...Clearly it seems the reason for victory here Ben Wallace playing amazing 10 points 15 rebounds 6 blocks and holding Zach Randolph to 8-24 shooting Thats the key right there
Yes, this win belongs to Ben Wallace. He held Zach to a very low shooting percentage and racked up good stats himself. (He shot a clean .500 instead of his .400 average) Good win for the Pistons, showing us that they still can rely on their defense to win games.
