Pistons deal Celtics first home defeat of season

BOSTON: Chauncey Billups delivered 28 points, including two clutch free throws, as the Detroit Pistons dealt the Boston Celtics their first home loss of the National Basketball Association season on Wednesday.

Billups' two free throws with one-tenth of a second left proved the difference in the Pistons' 87-85 victory over the Celtics.

Richard Hamilton chipped in 21 points for the Pistons, who improved to 18-7 overall and an NBA-leading 9-2 on the road.

Boston, meanwhile, saw its 12-game home-court winning streak end. The Celtics had won their last nine games.

Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with 26 points and 12 rebounds.

Ray Allen, returning to action after missing two games with a tender right ankle, scored 24 points.

The game featured the two top defensive teams in the NBA as the Celtics came in allowing just 86.5 points while the Pistons were second at 91.5.

Boston led 65-61 in the final quarter as the Pistons took their first lead since the first quarter with 9:42 to play when Lindsey Hunter hit a three-pointer.

The Pistons led 85-79 with a minute left, when Boston's Eddie House hit a three-pointer. Allen tied the game at 85-85 with a three-pointer with 18 seconds to play.

As Billups attempted a jumper in the waning moments, Tony Allen jumped in the air and fouled him, setting up the winning free throws.

In New York, the Knicks defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-90 with LeBron James scoring 32 points with eight rebounds and six assists for the Cavaliers, who have lost nine of their last 11 games.

David Lee scored 17 of his 22 points in the first half, Jamal Crawford added 21, and New York beat Cleveland for its most lopsided victory of the season.

Two nights after coach Isiah Thomas questioned their heart and toughness, the Knicks (8-17) shot a season-best 56.2 percent from the field and led by as many as 24 points in their most complete effort during a disappointing first 25 games.

In Atlanta, the Hawks outlasted the slumping Miami Heat to win 117-111 in overtime. The Heat have been defeated in eight of their past 11 games and lost Alonzo Mourning due to a knee injury.

Joe Johnson scored 25 points and gave Atlanta the lead for good with a three-point play. Marvin Williams had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the Hawks.

At Washington, Ben Gordon scored 22 points and Chicago used a 12-0 run in the final 4 minutes to beat Washington 95-84 .

Chicago's run came after Caron Butler's jump shot gave Washington its first lead of the second half, 80-79, with about four minutes to play. The Bulls then scored the game's next 12 points to end Washington's four-game winning streak.

The Charlotte Bobcats rallied from a 12-point deficit with six minutes left to beat the Utah Jazz 98-92. Gerald Wallace had 26 points to lead Charlotte.

The San Antonio Spurs lost their third successive road game when Rudy Gay hit a three-pointer over Tim Duncan as the final buzzer sounded, lifting the Memphis Grizzlies past the Spurs 88-85.

Dwight Howard had 21 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks when the Orlando Magic beat the Houston Rockets 97-92. Yao Ming had 19 points and 17 rebounds for the Rockets, who lost Tracy McGrady with a knee injury after the first half.

Agencies

(China Daily 12/21/2007 page24)