48MoH: Detroit Pistons 109, San Antonio Spurs 101

[Blackjack]

Detroit Pistons 109, San Antonio Spurs 101
by Timothy Varner

The Spurs and Pistons were tied at the half.

Detroit controlled the game for most of the second half, commanding an 11 point lead at the 4:54 mark, before the game took an entertaining turn. Gregg Popovich decided to intentionally foul Ben Wallace, who has a .438 FT%.

The coaching maneuver worked, and the crowd at the Palace wanted blood. There was a shrill group of women immediately behind the Spurs bench that would make Susie Essman blush. They were in full command of their adjectives. And their suggestions had all the nuance of a rip saw.

The message was simple enough: Gregg Popovich was, putting it less colorfully, less than a man for straying from honest defensive schemes. Where was San Antonio’s championship defense? Where was Pop’s pride? All this, and a handful of insulting remarks about Kwame Brown aside. Poor Kwame didn’t even play.

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[cd98]

I disagree with fouling Wallace. When we can't guard anyone, we shouldn't be allowed to win the game by fouling Wallace. And we didn't.

The Spurs are so bad defensively that even Detroit's scrubby line up can score 100 points on us and make Stuckey and other Pistons look like all-stars.