Monday, May 06, 2002
Pistons 96, Celtics 84
By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — The Detroit Pistons made sure there would be no rest for Paul Pierce — on offense or defense.
Michael Curry took care of that.
Curry scored a career playoff-high 15 points and played a big part in slowing Pierce as the Pistons beat the Boston Celtics 96-84 on Sunday in the opener of the best-of-seven second-round series.
Curry, in the starting lineup for his defense and leadership, averaged just 2.6 points in the first round against Toronto and just four points during the regular season.
“It's a big bonus,” said Detroit's Cliff Robinson, who scored 30 points. “Paul Pierce is guarding him, so it's going to be important for us to find Mike when he's open to make sure Paul is not resting on the defensive end. Paul is a tremendous offensive player, and you don't want to allow him to take a break on defense.”
Curry made just seven 3-pointers this season. On Sunday, however, he hit all three of his 3-point attempts.
“It was definitely surprising to me,” said Pierce, who was limited to 17 points one game after he scored 46 in Game 5 against Philadelphia.
Still, Curry doesn't plan on altering his defense-first role.
“I might not hit another 3-pointer this year, but I know I'll be playing defense,” he said.
The Pistons made a team playoff-record 12 3-pointers and Jerry Stackhouse had 26 points and set career playoff highs with 11 rebounds and eight assists.
But this game was about defense. The Pistons held Boston to 38 percent shooting — Antoine Walker and Pierce combined to shoot just 14-of-39. Walker finished with 20 points.
“Despite what we did offensively, I don't want anybody to overlook what we did defensively,” said Curry, who played a season-high 40 minutes to be Pierce's shadow. “That's going to be the key for us if we're going to win this series.”
Pierce said his scoring was down not because of what the Pistons did but because teammates took some shots away. He was 7-of-17 while players such as Kenny Anderson, who scored 17, and Rodney Rogers took a combined 27 shots.
“I just didn't have the number of opportunities that I've had,” said Pierce, who averaged four more shots a game against the 76ers.
The Pistons were 11-0 during the season when both Robinson and Stackhouse scored at least 20. The duo did it for the first time in the playoffs on Sunday to extend the streak.
Detroit made five 3-pointers in the final 6:48 of the third, including Curry's shot as the quarter ended, to take a 78-62 lead and essentially put Boston away.
Notes: The Celtics are 2-9 in their last 11 playoff games on the road. ... Robinson made six 3-pointers, which tied Bill Laimbeer's team playoff record from the 1990 NBA finals against Portland during Robinson's rookie season. ... Detroit rookie C Zeljko Rebraca will miss the series because he broke his right hand during practice Saturday. ... Carlisle played for the Celtics from 1984-87. The last time Boston beat Detroit in the playoffs was 1987. Carlisle was on the team but injured and his boss, team president Joe Dumars, was the shooting guard for the Pistons.
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Pistons 96, Celtics 84