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Pistons top 76ers, win series 4-1
The Detroit Pistons followed up three lackluster quarters with a dominant fourth, earning the defending NBA champions a spot in the second round. Richard Hamilton scored 10 of his 23 points in the final quarter to lift the Pistons to an 88-78 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night in Game 5 of their first-round series.
Detroit trailed for much of the game, but went ahead 62-61 when Tayshaun Prince made the first basket of the fourth quarter. An 8-0 run gave the Pistons an 80-69 lead with 4:48 left. Allen Iverson scored 34 points, playing the last 10:56 after hurting his right ankle. Iverson landed awkwardly after missing a shot and was crumpled on the court before being helped to the bench. He had his right ankle taped and was quickly back in the game. Philadelphia's Chris Webber scored 11, and Samuel Dalembert had eight points in the first quarter but didn't score again until late in the game, finishing with 11 points. Chauncey Billups scored 23 for the Pistons, Prince had 14 points and Ben Wallace added 11 points and 13 rebounds. Philadelphia started with a nothing-to-lose mentality while the Pistons came out passive, perhaps knowing they had to win only once in three games to advance. When Detroit did play with more intensity, it was often out of sync on offense during the first three quarters. Both teams exerted almost as much effort complaining to officials as they did playing, with Rasheed Wallace getting called for a technical after Dalembert was whistled for going over Wallace's back, and Iverson arguing while his teammates were huddling on the bench during a timeout. The Sixers were behind just twice in the first quarter, led by as many as seven and were ahead 24-21 at the end of the period. They made 52.4 percent of their shots and held Detroit to 30.4 percent. Ben Wallace kept the game close with seven points and six rebounds in the opening quarter. Detroit seemed to seize the momentum when it took the lead with six straight points early in the second quarter, but Iverson put the Sixers back ahead on the next possession. The Sixers scored the final six points of the half to take a 44-43 lead.
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