NBA News

[abadani69]

Jerry Sloan has been on the Utah Jazz's bench since before Golden State's Andris Biedrins and Monta Ellis were born. The veteran coach has seen and heard just about everything that could decide a playoff series.

And the Golden State Warriors' home crowd doesn't qualify.

"I thought the crowd in Houston (during the first round) was just as loud as it was last night," Sloan said Saturday after practice at Berkeley High School as the Jazz regrouped from Golden State's 20-point victory in Game 3, which cut Utah's series lead to 2-1.

"They have good fans ... but I could hear the (referee's) whistle blowing last night. I couldn't hear the whistle blow in our building."

Sloan is pretty much alone in that assessment so far during the postseason. The Warriors are unbeaten in four playoff games in Oakland, where Golden State's playoff-starved fans roundly impressed the rest of the nation during their club's unlikely run to the second round.

Sloan will get another chance to hear all about it during Game 4 on Sunday night -- but the Jazz hope they won't hear those whistles nearly as often when Deron Williams and Derek Fisher are guarding Baron Davis.

Utah's point guards got into early foul trouble while shadowing Davis. The Golden State guard scored 32 points -- his fourth 30-point performance in a remarkable playoff run -- and had nine assists and six steals for the eighth-seeded Warriors, capping it with a stunning dunk over Andrei ***ilenko that still had players on both teams talking Saturday.

"That's all we've been talking about," Davis said with a sheepish grin before practice at the Warriors' downtown training complex. "I just came in here trying to get some shots and get ready for (Sunday), but that's all I hear."

Though Davis is close to achieving mythic status among the Bay Area's basketball fans with his spectacular play this spring, the Jazz believe they can finish off the series at home Tuesday if they can just figure out how to slow down Davis on Sunday.

"Everything I do is a foul," said Williams, who has 13 fouls in three games. "I don't know what I'm allowed to do, me or Derek (Fisher). ... Baron is a physical player, and it's tough, especially when you can't be physical with him back."

Davis' proficiency wasn't the only reason for Golden State's improved effort after narrowly losing the first two games in Salt Lake City. The Warriors also hit 15 3-pointers and forced 25 Utah turnovers while limiting the Jazz's rebounding advantage -- largely because Golden State made more of its shots, particularly from outside.

Golden State has made 42 3-pointers in three games against the Jazz after hitting 42 in the final three games of its first-round victory over Dallas. The Warriors relied heavily on the 3-pointer last season as well, but weren't nearly as proficient as they've been in the postseason.

"We've got so many guys that can take them, so many guys that can make them," said Jason Richardson, who has 12 3-pointers against Utah. "When we added (Stephen Jackson) and Al (Harrington) to the mix, now people can't double-team anybody or defend everybody."

It is not a surprise that this unlikely series has turned into a battle of wills. Golden State is likely to even the series if it can force its speedy tempo on Utah again, while the Jazz could be on the brink of a trip to the Western Conference finals if they can harass the Warriors' guards and keep the action down low, where Utah dominates.

"If we can keep our point guards out of foul trouble, we're a much better team," forward Carlos Boozer said. "We told them they have to do a much better job of moving their feet."

The Warriors also figured out a way to slow Boozer's tremendous inside game by matching him up with Harrington, a surprise addition to their starting lineup for Game 3. Though Boozer still had 19 points and 11 rebounds, Golden State's defense frequently persuaded the Jazz to settle for jumpers instead of taking full advantage of Boozer and center Mehmet Okur.

"We got very impatient and never made them play any defense, really," Sloan said. "Those quick shots turn into fast breaks, and they can beat us down the floor."

And despite Sloan's assessment, the Warriors clearly draw energy and resilience from their crowd. Golden State has won nine straight home games going back to the regular season, as well as 20 of its past 24 in Oakland.

"We had a great game (Friday), but we are still in trouble," coach Don Nelson said. "We need to win the next game, and have the same kind of performance, or even better. One game is wonderful, but we need both of them here. We'll have a chance in the series if we can win the next game."

[abadani69]

The Chicago Bulls built another big lead, and the Detroit Pistons were rallying. Sound familiar?

This time, there was no collapse.

Luol Deng scored 25 points, ***k Hinrich and Ben Gordon added 19 apiece, and the Bulls hung on to beat Detroit 102-87 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday afternoon and avoid a sweep.

"I don't care who it is, we are better than being swept in four games," Ben Wallace said. "We just have to come out and fight."

Unlike Game 3, when the Bulls saw a 19-point lead dissolve into a seven-point loss, Chicago withstood a late push by Detroit. The Bulls outscored the Pistons 27-13 in the third quarter to turn a seven-point halftime lead into a 77-56 advantage going into the fourth.

They didn't flinch when Chauncey Billups hit two free throws with 3:55 left to cut it to 87-80, or when he answered Gordon's 3-pointer with one of his own. That made it 90-83 with 2:46 remaining, but the Bulls hung on against a Pistons team that had won 12 of 13 closeout games.

"I think the feeling was we knew the run was coming," Hinrich said. "You feel like the shift in momentum. We just needed to take a deep breath and just keep what we were doing to get there -- moving the ball, keeping an up-tempo game and getting stops."

The Bulls still have a long way to go to join the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1975 New York Islanders and 2004 Boston Red Sox as the only major pro teams to win a best-of-seven series after falling behind 3-0. The Pistons will try to wrap this one up Tuesday at The Palace of Auburn Hills, where they blew out Chicago in Games 1 and 2 after sweeping Orlando in the first round.

Deng was 10-of-15 after shooting 38 percent in the first three games and grabbed 13 rebounds.

"I just had good looks," Deng said. "You make your first couple shots and your confidence goes up."

Although he committed five turnovers, Hinrich added 10 assists and took a charge on Billups after Billups hit those free throws to pull within seven. Wallace delivered a vintage performance against his former team, grabbing 17 rebounds, and the Bulls held a 51-33 edge on the glass.

Wallace also scored 11 points and blocked two shots, while Tyrus Thomas provided a boost in the fourth quarter, scoring eight of his 10 points.

"I guess we realized finally we didn't have anything to lose," Hinrich said. "We just came out and we settled into ourselves tonight. We felt we had gotten away from what we had been successful doing throughout the season and throughout the playoffs so far this series."

Billups led Detroit with 23 points. Tayshaun Prince added 18, but Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace and Chris Webber all had rough afternoons. Hamilton (11 points) was just 4-for-12. Wallace was just 4-for-16 and scored 14. Webber did not score.

"I'm disappointed we lost, disappointed we got beat, disappointed maybe we played at times out of character," coach Flip Saunders said. "Got to get back to what we do well. When we take 25 3s, I think that showed we were settling too much and trying to take the easy way, try to hit the home run rather than hit the singles and grind it out."

Billups pinned the loss on himself, saying, "(We) cut it all the way to seven. We grind it all the way, all the way, we had the play called and I saw the baseline open when I was about to turn. And I went to attack, we were in the bonus and I was ready to get to the free throw line. We were getting something every time, so I went to attack it and he was there for the charge."

He said the call was a good one and added, "If it wasn't for that, if we ran the play and got something different, maybe we cut it to five or four. And I think we would've went on to squeeze it."

Chicago scored 12 of the first 14 points in the second half to make it 62-45 midway through the third. The lead grew to 19 with 4:41 left in the quarter when Rasheed Wallace was called for a foul on Ben Wallace and got a technical. Gordon hit the technical free throw, and Ben Wallace went 1-of-2 to make it 67-48.

Moments later, after having his put-back blocked by Andres Nocioni, Prince held his arms out looking for a call. The Pistons were frustrated, appeared to be losing their cool. They collected themselves in the fourth, and when they made that run, Chicago's P.J. Brown acknowledged he experienced some flashbacks.

"A little bit," he said. "The biggest difference is we stayed aggressive. We didn't relax. The other night, we had a big lead, and instead of continuing to do the things that got us to the 19-point lead, we relaxed and weren't aggressive."

The Bulls led 50-43 at the half and pulled away in the third quarter, when Detroit was just 5-of-22 and was outrebounded 21-7.

"We came out at halftime and didn't respond like we did in Game 3," Prince said.

And the Bulls had a different answer when things got tense.

"We're not concerned at all," Rasheed Wallace said. "Our hats off to them, they won the game, you got to respect them for that, they play hard today, but we will go and play hard on Tuesday."

Notes

The Pistons are 8-4 all-time when trying to complete a sweep. ... The Bulls have not been swept in a playoff series since losing in three games to Boston in the first round in 1987. The last time they were swept in a best-of-seven was against the Celtics in the 1981 conference semifinals. ... Billups and Hamilton fouled out in the final minute. ... Webber was 0-for-8 with four rebounds and did not score in the two games in Chicago. That came on the heels of a 22-point effort in Game 2.

[abadani69]

Phoenix 104, San Antonio 98

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The Phoenix Suns' 12-1 run to end Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals gave them a 104-98 victory Monday night that evened the series with the San Antonio Spurs.

The tension that has been building between the teams throughout nearly boiled over with 18 seconds to play.

The Suns, who trailed by as many as 11 points, had taken the lead for the first time in the second half on consecutive behind-the-back feeds from Steve Nash to Amare Stoudemire that made it 100-97 with 32 seconds to play.

As Nash started to bring the ball up the court after Manu Ginobili missed the Spurs' fourth straight shot, San Antonio's Robert Horry hit him with a forearm that knocked him into the scorers' table and had players from both teams rushing to the scene.

Phoenix's Raja Bell tried to get at Horry as did Nash after he jumped to his feet.


Horry was given a flagrant foul and was ejected. Bell was given a technical foul. A free throw by each team made it 101-98. The Suns kept possession and Nash added another free throw with 16 seconds to go.

"He just body checked me out of bounds," Nash said. "I understand he's frustrated, it happens but he did body check me."

Shawn Marion added two free throws with 7.4 seconds to go.

Game 5 is Wednesday night in Phoenix and it's possible there could be suspensions from the league for players leaving the bench after Horry fouled Nash.

"Simply, we stuck with it. We could've folded a lot of times," Nash said. "They were playing great and made a lot of shots."

Stoudemire led the Suns with 26 points, while Nash had 24 points and 15 assists.

"We needed to open the floor off Steve some and get that balance," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said. "Tonight we were able to go smaller and get away with it.

"We just have to have that desperation and play with the fury we did in the last quarter."

Tony Parker led the Spurs with 23 points and Tim Duncan had 21 points and 11 rebounds.

The increasingly hostile series has been marked by bumps, bruises and harsh words. A gash across Nash's nose required six stitches after a collision with Parker in Game 1 and Ginobili got a bloodied and bruised eye in Game 3 on a drive to the basket.

Last week, Stoudemire called the Spurs a "dirty team" and targeted Bruce Bowen and Ginobili in particular. He said Bowen purposely kicked him in the Suns' Game 2 win.

And Bowen gave his critics ammunition when in Game 3 on Saturday he kneed Nash in the groin area. Nash said Monday before the game that Bowen told him on the court that the move was unintentional. The foul originally called on the play was upgraded to a "flagrant foul 1."

The Spurs entered the fourth quarter leading 80-72.

Marion's dunk with 1:31 to go brought the Suns within one, and Stoudemire's first layup put the Suns up 98-97. It was their first lead since 3:38 left in the second quarter, when they were up 38-37.

Marion was largely absent offensively, scoring just three points heading into the final quarter. His 3 with 8:33 to go, followed by another basket, brought the Suns within 85-80 with 7:51 to play. Marion finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Kurt Thomas had 14 points and Bell 12.

Stoudemire, who sat much of the second half of Saturday's Game 3 with foul trouble, picked up his fourth and fifth fouls just four seconds apart in the fourth quarter. He went to the bench with 6:54 left in the game.

Finley had 17 points, including four 3-pointers, for San Antonio, Brent Barry added 12 and Ginobili had 10 points.

The Suns led 20-12 in the first quarter as Nash, who was scoreless in the first half of Game 3, made his first three shots. Phoenix was up 24-22 heading into the second quarter but Nash cooled, missing three of four shots. He also picked up his first foul, and complained about it, when Bowen fell to the court as the two ran down the floor on a break.

Stoudemire played just 49 seconds in the second quarter when he picked up his second foul with 11:11 to play.

The Suns, who held the Spurs to just 81 points in their Game 2 win, outrebounded the Spurs 23-17 in the first half and 42-32 in the game.

Notes

Many Spurs fans were wearing a dab of black under their left eyes in support of Ginobili. The display mimicked Game 2, when a local radio station passed out bandages for Suns fans to wear over their noses in support of Nash after his injury. ... The Spurs' bench outscored the Suns' reserves 28-16.

[donsaeid]

فینیکس سن آنتونیو را در دو دقیقه شکست داد

فینیکس که در سالهای اخیر، بخاطر فلسفه تهاجمی مربیش، مایک دآنتونی، و اجتناب از بازی فیزیکی مورد انتقاد قرار داشته است، دوشنبه شب نشان داد که به هر چالشی پاسخ می دهد.

بازیکنان فینیکس، در دو دقیقه پایانی، روند بازی را تغییر دادند. آنها ۹۷ به ۹۲ از میزبان خود عقب بودند، اما با یک یورش ۱۲ امتیازی بازی را ۱۰۴ به ۹۸ به سود خود خاتمه دادند.

در کوارتر چهارم شرایط بازی به اندازه ای تغییر کرد که سن آنتونیو، که مجموعه ای از باتجربه ترین بازیکنان را در اختیار دارد، از ۱۰ شوت آخر خود تنها یکی را به ثمر رساندند.

مایک دآنتونی، به ویژه از عملکرد شان ماریون، فوروارد تیم خود ابراز رضایت کرد که علی رغم کسب امتیاز پایین تر از حد انتظار، در همه جای زمین حضور داشت و ۱۲ ریباند بدست آورد.

از دیدگاه تیمی، برتری بارز فینیکس در ریباندها قابل توجه بود، ضمن اینکه بازیکنان فینیکس، به مراتب بیشتر از سن آنتونیو از حریف خطا گرفتند و پشت خط پرتاب آزاد رفتند.

از سوی دیگر، سن آنتونیو به تاکتیکی غیرمتعارف روی آورد و ۲۳ شوت سه امتیازی پرتاب کرد (۹ پرتاب بیشتر از فینیکس). این درحالی است که فینیکس به بازی سرعتی و پرتابهای سه امتیازی شهرت دارد.

باد داغ در آریزونا و تکزاس

بازیهای سن آنتونیو و فینیکس - که هر دو امید دار قهرمانی هستند، در نیمه نهایی کنفرانس غرب، در فضایی به شدت پر تنش دنبال می شود.

در بازی اول، برخورد استیو نش و تونی پارکر، گارد راس دو تیم، باعث ایجاد جراحتی جدی در ناحیه بینی استیو نش، بازیکن فینیکس شد و تنها پس از بخیه ششم بود که زخم کنترل شد.

بازی های بعدی به شدت تحت تاثیر اظهارات آماره استودامایر، سنتر فینیکس قرار داشت که بازیکنان سن آنتونیو را به "کثیف بازی کردن" متهم کرده بود.

این فضا در بازی چهارم هم وجود داشت و در دقایق پایانی به اوج خود رسید.

۳۰ ثانیه به پایان بازی و در شرایطی که سن آنتونیو برد را با باخت عوض کرده بود، رابرت اوری، فوروارد باتجربه این تیم که بیش از ۱۵ سال در ان بی ای بازی کرده، در برخوردی شدید، استیو نش را مقابل میز داوران در میانه میدان، به زمین پرتاب کرد، که باعث ایجاد جنجال شد.

راجا بل، بازیکن فینیکس که در حمایت از هم تیمی خود به سمت رابرت اوری حمله ور شده بود، خطای فنی گرفت و البته، اوری با گرفتن یک خطای غیر ورزشی، از زمین اخراج شد.

تاکنون در مجموع چهار بازی، سهم هرتیم دو پیروزی بوده و انتظار نمی رود که این رویارویی به سادگی خاتمه یابد.

[abadani69]

The Chicago Bulls are going home -- to play another game.

The Bulls made shots, stops and got to almost every loose ball against the Detroit Pistons.

Suddenly, it's a series.

Ben Gordon scored 28 points and the hot-shooting Bulls beat Detroit 108-92 Tuesday night in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, pulling to 3-2 in the series.

"We just aren't ready to go home yet," Bulls center Ben Wallace said.

Detroit opened the second round with two routs and made a big comeback in the third game, leading some to predict it would end with a sweep -- or in five games at the most.

"A lot of people were writing us off," Gordon said. "But we had a lot of confidence in ourselves and I think that showed in the last two games."

Game 6 is Thursday night in Chicago and if Game 7 is necessary, it would be Monday night back on the Pistons' home court.

Chauncey Billups said it's fair to say Detroit relaxed.

"I can't say we did that intentionally, but it's human nature when you get that kind of a cushion to let up a little bit," he said. "Our team, as you know, is not that good with cushions. Unfortunately, we've done that time and time again and have had to go on the road to win."

Last year at this point of the playoffs, the Pistons had to win Game 6 at Cleveland and Game 7 at home to avoid elimination after winning the first two games. Detroit maintains that long series hurt its chances of going to the NBA finals for a third straight year.

The Bulls started Game 5 with a sense of urgency and didn't let up in a game they never trailed.

Chicago only missed one of its first seven shots while holding Detroit to 3-of-9 shooting and each starter scored to help build a 14-6 lead.

The Bulls made 72.2 percent of their shots in the first half -- falling just short of an NBA record.

"It's tough to shoot 70 percent with no one guarding you in an empty gym, much less doing it in that kind of pressure situation," Pistons coach Flip Saunders said. "Having a team shooting like that is demoralizing."

Despite the sensational shooting, Chicago led by just eight at halftime.

The Bulls turned the game into a rout with a 22-5 run in the third quarter and led by 21 going into the fourth.

Unlike the two previous games, the Pistons didn't rally at all and were frustrated against a team that looked much like the one that swept the defending NBA Miami Heat in the first round.

"When the game's going on, I'm not sitting there admiring our shooting, but we obviously did a good job," Chicago coach Scott Skiles said. "We shot very well against Miami, and then for some reason, we couldn't knock anything down in the first two games here."

Chicago finished shooting 57 percent after coming close in the first half to the NBA record the Los Angeles Lakers set by making 74.2 percent of their shots against Seattle during the 1998 playoffs, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

The Bulls made more shots (26) in the first half and scored just 10 fewer points than they did in all of Game 1. They broke a franchise playoff record with just 23 field goals in the series opener, leading to a franchise postseason-low 69 points.

Gordon connected early and often and had plenty of help.

"I made my first shot and I was in a good rhythm all night," said Gordon, who made 10 of 16 shots and missed only one of six 3-pointers. "When I was open, I just let it go."

Luol Deng scored 20, ***k Hinrich had 17 and P.J. Brown scored a playoff-high 15.

The Pistons, meanwhile, didn't have a one consistently effective player on offense and allowed the Bulls to do whatever they wanted at the other end of the court.

Billups scored 17, Richard Hamilton had 16 points and Rasheed Wallace added 15, but the trio combined to shoot just 16-of-42.

The Pistons fell to 12-3 when they have a chance to win a series, with the rare losses coming in the last two games and in Game 7 of the 2005 NBA finals against San Antonio.

"We need a sense of urgency," Saunders said.

Notes

In Game 4, Hinrich appeared to throw a left-handed jab that connected with Flip Murray's groin on a dunk. Murray said Monday he didn't think it was intentional, but he wasn't so sure after seeing the replay for the first time. "I asked him about it, and he said he didn't mean to do anything to me," Murray said after Game 5. Hinrich insisted it wasn't intentional. The NBA did not take action against Hinrich. ... Ben Wallace had six points, five rebounds, four assists and two blocks for the Bulls.

[abadani69]

Utah ended Golden State's surprising run through the playoffs and got the Jazz back to where they haven't been since the days of Stockton and Malone.

Andrei ***ilenko had 21 points, 15 rebounds and three steals to lead the Jazz to a 100-87 victory over the Warriors on Tuesday night, wrapping up the Western Conference semifinal series in five games.

Utah held Golden State to 14 points in the fourth quarter and unraveled the Warriors, who had knocked out top-seeded Dallas in the opening round but were badly outmatched in much of this series.

Carlos Boozer had 21 points and 14 boards and Derek Fisher scored 20 points for the Jazz, who clinched it from the foul line after struggling with free throws all night.

Baron Davis led Golden State with 21 points and eight assists.

Utah will play either Phoenix or San Antonio in the Western Conference finals, which the Jazz haven't been to since John Stockton and Karl Malone led them there in 1998. With Stockton's No. 12 and The Mailman's No. 32 retired and hanging from the rafters, the new Jazz improved to 6-0 at home in the playoffs.

Deron Williams battled foul trouble and scored just two points, but he had seven assists and Fisher picked up the slack in the backcourt. Fisher scored 11 in the fourth quarter as the Jazz slowly pulled away in the final minutes, finally making their foul shots as Golden State's magic and patience finally ran out.

Golden State had two technicals and a flagrant foul in the second half.

Davis, who received a flagrant foul from the NBA earlier Tuesday for knocking down Fisher late in Game 4, was caught grabbing Fisher's shorts as Fisher was getting up after one of many collisions in the game.

Official Bennett Salvatore was right there and called Davis for the foul, which was symbolic of how the game was going. The series and season were falling out of the Warriors' grasp.

The Jazz kept the Warriors' hopes alive for a while by missing half of their first 22 free throws, then regained their composure from the line and scored their last 12 points on foul shots.

***ilenko broke the last tie of the game on a tip-in with 6:04 remaining, then Fisher added a 3-pointer 19 seconds later to put Utah up 88-83. It was Utah's last field goal.

Davis made two free throws and Jason Richardson added a jumper with 3:39 left to pull the Warriors within 88-87, then Golden State didn't score again and the Jazz sealed it from the line.

At the buzzer, confetti rained on the court and Tina Turner's "Simply The Best" blared from the speakers. Maybe not the best, but certainly better than Jazz fans have seen in a while.

Mehmet Okur had 14 points and 10 rebounds, and Paul Millsap had 12 boards as Utah outrebounded Golden State 59-35. That helped make up for the Jazz's 25 turnovers, their biggest problem in the series against the pesky but inconsistent Warriors.

Stephen Jackson had 16 points and five assists, and Jason Richardson had 13 points and eight rebounds for Golden State, which couldn't keep up the galloping pace that carried the Warriors through the first round and pushed the Jazz in the first four games of the series.

Notes

Golden State was 6-for-30 from 3-point range. ... Utah G Dee Brown returned after missing two games with a sprained neck and had two points and two assists. ... The Jazz are in the playoffs for the first time since 2003, Stockton and Malone's last season with the team. ... The Warriors forced 14 turnovers in the first half.

[abadani69]

As a teenager in Germany, Dirk Nowitzki stayed up late to watch the NBA finals and got up early to watch All-Star games. He worked on his shot every day and came home to a room with a poster of Scottie Pippen on the wall.

Barely 20 when he was drafted, Nowitzki wasn't sure he was ready for the NBA. Even after his rookie season, he wondered "if I had it, if I was going to make it in this league."

"I just kept on working, kept learning, kept my confidence up as much as I could," he said.

Nowitzki smiled as he shared those memories Tuesday, standing a few feet from an NBA MVP trophy with his name etched into it.

Having long since conquered his doubts, Nowitzki put a permanent stamp on his career by winning this award -- the first for a European, for someone who didn't go to high school or college in the United States, and for a member of the Dallas Mavericks.


It also was the rare instance of the honor going to a player who couldn't get his team out of the playoffs' first round, but commissioner David Stern, Dallas coach Avery Johnson and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban did their best to keep the focus on the things Nowitzki did right this season and throughout his nine-year career.

Stern praised Nowitzki as "an iconic, elite athlete from Europe who has not only learned to play our game, he's mastered it." Cuban became emotional talking about his star player's work ethic and desire.

"You don't have to encourage him to get into the gym, he's the guy you have to lock out," Cuban said. "He's not the guy who you wonder if he cares, he's the guy who hurts so much when things don't go the way you want. That's what makes him an MVP. He's an example ... that you don't have to fit a certain role, a certain model, but if you work hard enough and care enough, anything is possible."

About the only person dragging the mood down was Nowitzki.

"Even when I heard I was MVP, I was sad to watch all these playoff games and know that we're not a part of it," Nowitzki said. "It's heartbreaking still to me. I was trying to be positive and be really happy, but it's going to take a while for it to really sink in."

Nowitzki led the Mavericks to 67 wins, a total eclipsed by only five teams in NBA history. He was the team's top scorer (24.6 points per game) and rebounder (8.9 per game), and averaged a career-high 3.4 assists. He also was the only player in the league to shoot better than 50 percent from the field, 40 percent on 3-pointers and 90 percent on free throws.

He was listed first on 83 of the 129 ballots, garnering a total of 1,138 points, to end the two-year MVP reign of his close friend and former teammate Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns.

"I'm extremely proud of him and happy for him," Nash said. "I think it's really well-deserved. Hopefully he gets a chance to enjoy it regardless of their playoff outcome, because he had a phenomenal year and he really deserves it."

Nash finished second with 1,013 points and 44 first-place votes. He could have joined Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell as the only players to be named MVP in three straight years.

Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers got the remaining two first-place votes. San Antonio's Tim Duncan was fourth and Cleveland's LeBron James was fifth.

The vote was based on regular-season play, with ballots due before the playoffs started. The result might have been different, otherwise, because of how poorly Nowitzki played in Dallas' first-round elimination by Golden State, one of the biggest upsets in NBA history.

Stern dismissed the idea of Nowitzki's victory prompting a change in voting to include some or all of the playoffs. It's worth noting that five of the previous seven MVPs did not lead their team to the championship; however, it had been 25 years (Houston's Moses Malone in 1981-82) since an MVP failed to win a single playoff series.

"It happens," Stern said. "The beauty of sports is you take nothing for granted. Obviously Dirk was disappointed with the way the season ended, but he should feel quite good about his place in history for the season he led the Mavs to."

Nowitzki takes a lot of pride in how far he's come in his career. He thanked his first coach, current Warriors coach Don Nelson, for daring to "have a 7-footer dribble up the ball and shoot 3-pointers" and credited Johnson for helping round out his game during the last two years.

"Once you're at this stage, I think everything that you've put into it comes through your mind -- all the hard work, all the hours you put in," he said. "It's just very fulfilling."

Nowitzki started playing basketball when he was 13. A few years later, he began working with Holger Geschwindner, the captain of West Germany's 1972 Olympic team. Their plan to get him into the NBA was creating a 7-footer who could shoot 3s.

Once they succeeded, they kept tinkering, adding skills every year. Even after turning Nowitzki into an All-Star and now an MVP, they're still building. He leaves Wednesday for about a month of traveling, then he'll head back into the basketball laboratory.

"I still feel like there's a lot I can pick up," said Nowitzki, who turns 29 next month.

The one thing he can't change for at least a year is his growing reputation for playoff failure.

"I understand there are a lot of stars in history and present who are great players and never really won a championship. As of now, I'm in that category," Nowitzki said. "The only good thing is ... I feel like I'm in the prime of my career. Hopefully I've got a lot of great postseason runs left."

AP Sports Writer Bob Baum in Phoenix contributed to this report.

[abadani69]

Coach Don Nelson isn't sure he'll return to guide the Golden State Warriors through the next stage of their resurgence.

Nelson plans to decide by July 1 whether he'll be back for another season with the Warriors, whose surprising playoff run ended Tuesday night with a second-round loss to the Utah Jazz. The defeat capped the franchise's first winning regular season and postseason berth since 1994.

"It's not a good time for me to make that decision," Nelson said Wednesday at the Warriors' downtown training complex. "I think it was really important that I came here. I'm not so sure it's important that I stay on."

Nelson, who turned 67 on Tuesday, went 42-40 in his first season back with Golden State, where he also coached from 1988-95. His 1,232 career coaching victories are the second-most in NBA history.

After snapping their 13-year playoff drought on the final day of the regular season, the eighth-seeded Warriors shocked the Dallas Mavericks in the first round, beating the NBA's best regular-season team -- and Nelson's former employer -- in six games. Utah beat the Warriors in five games, though all four losses were close.

Although Nelson signed a three-year contract to replace Mike Montgomery last August, he wants time to talk over his future with his wife, Joy, before committing to another year of the NBA grind, which gave him sleepless nights and added 15 pounds to his figure. Nelson plans to relax on the beach at his home in Maui until his head is clear.

Warriors probably fans shouldn't worry too much, however. Nelson also said he plans to keep his entire coaching staff intact, and he spoke optimistically of the Warriors' potential for improvement with a full healthy season for the roster that finished the regular season 16-5 before flattening the Mavs.

Nelson plans to add his opinions to top executive Chris Mullin's plans for the draft next month, and he'll decide his future around that time as well.

"I'm kind of anticipating coming back, but I'm just not totally sure," Nelson said. "Whether I want to put my body through another year or two would be the main issue. I'm not 66 any more. There's another life out there outside of basketball that's very enjoyable, especially when you have the means that I have at this particular time in my life."

[abadani69]

LeBron James has delivered facials in all shapes and sizes. Never one like this.

Incensed by a flagrant foul inflicted on teammate Sasha Pavlovic, James went nose-to-nose with New Jersey's Mikki Moore in the third quarter of Game 4 on Monday night, a heated confrontation that fired up Cleveland and sent the Cavaliers to an 87-85 win and 3-1 lead in their Eastern Conference semifinal.

"It really ticked me off that they would try to do something like that to Sasha," James said Tuesday. "They tried to hurt him. And me as the leader, I had to stick up for my teammate. I didn't like it -- at all."

While watching tape of New Jersey's victory in Game 3, James said he noticed the Nets picking on and being more physical with Pavlovic, who has done a nice job so far in the series keeping Vince Carter under wraps.

"I guess the intent was to try and go at Sasha in a harmful manner," said James, who hasn't figured out why the Nets have targeted Pavlovic. "Sasha knows he has 14 guys behind him. Especially, he's got me."

And this best-of-seven series has quickly developed an undercurrent of hostility, a theme already present in the Phoenix-San Antonio and Utah-Golden State showdowns out West.

With a win in Game 5 on Wednesday night, the Cavaliers can advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the third time and first since 1992. They've also got a chance to win a series at home, something they've only done on three occasions in their 37-year history but never since moving into Quicken Loans Arena -- formerly known as Gund Arena -- in 1994.

So much of this is new for the Cavs, who in 14 previous postseason appearances have never built a 3-1 lead in a best-of-seven series.

"We've done a lot of things the last few years that the Cavs haven't done, so it's nothing new," James said. "Hopefully we can take care of business and make some more history."

The Nets might soon be history, too.

They'll attempt to become the ninth team to erase a 3-1 deficit, but to do so, they'll need a much better effort from Carter, who went 6-of-23 from the field in Game 4 and is shooting just 34 percent (31-of-91) in the series.

Carter's inconsistent play down the stretch has been most perplexing. On Monday, he was 1-for-7 in the fourth quarter, and on the Nets' final possession, he was indecisive with the ball and fumbled it out of bounds after being double teamed by Eric Snow and Larry Hughes.

That last play stood out, but Nets coach Lawrence Frank lamented too many other missed opportunities by his club, now in a win-or-go-home pickle.

"We understand what we need to do," he said. "It's not going to be easy, but why is the closeout game the hardest? Because the team you're playing is desperate, and when you're desperate, you're willing to risk anything to get it done. That means as long as we haven't lost confidence, when they make runs we won't hang our heads and we'll keep on fighting."

Frank, of course, means figuratively fighting not trading punches with the Cavs, who appeared ready to throw down if need be on Monday.

Cleveland trailed by four when Pavlovic drove the lane and got flattened with a two-handed shove by Moore, who got a flagrant foul and tongue lashing from James, who refused to specify the contents of his message.

"I didn't think it was a fair play," James said. "A guy is going up off one leg and he's up in the air and he gets pushed. You can injure somebody like that. We're not a dirty team at all. We don't look for anything, but when things start to happen to us, we've got to react."

The Cavs went on a 14-3 run after the altercation, giving them a two-point lead entering the fourth. Moore's body blow also intensified Cleveland's defensive pressure and the Nets shot only 3-of-16 in the final period with no field goals in the last seven minutes.

"We have guys on our team when little incidents like that happen, they tend to take it personally and try to do something about it on the floor," Cavs coach Mike Brown said.

James' response to Moore's shove was another sign of maturity for both he and the Cavaliers. Criticized for being too nice at times, Cleveland's superstar showed he isn't going to back down.

Last season, when Detroit's Rasheed Wallace threw an elbow and opened a nasty gash on the head of center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, none of his Cavalier teammate's came to the rescue. Those days may be over.

"It's a different mentality," Brown said. "It was a growing and learning experience for us as a team and our guys even met and talked about that situation on their own. When Sasha got hit, you don't want your star player in the mix because you don't want somebody taking a swing.

"But the first guy there was LeBron. When that happens our guys understand that we're a team and we're going to stick together."

Associated Press Writer David Porter contributed to this story from East Rutherford, N.J.

[abadani69]

The Detroit Pistons can breathe a little easier. There won't be a Game 7, after all.

Richard Hamilton scored 23 points and the Pistons beat the Chicago Bulls 95-85 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Thursday night, clinching a series that turned tense after Detroit won the first three games.

No NBA team has lost a best-of-seven series after taking a 3-0 lead, and the Pistons rejected the Bulls' shot at history. Now, Detroit can focus on its fifth straight conference final.

Down 48-43 at halftime, the Pistons outscored the Bulls 31-21 in the third quarter to take a 74-69 lead, and Chicago could not sustain any momentum in the fourth.

Rasheed Wallace had 16 points and 13 rebounds for Detroit, while Tayshaun Prince added 17 points and nine rebounds. Chauncey Billups was just 3-for-12 from the field but he scored 11 of his 21 points in the third quarter.

A jumper by Wallace, who had received a technical foul just over a minute earlier, and hook shot by Prince made it 85-73 with 2:20 left, and Detroit hung on from there.

"We were moving the ball," Wallace said of the difference in Detroit's offense in the second half. "In the first half we were stagnant and didn't move the ball. That's what we talked about at halftime."

Chicago's P.J. Brown attempted just three shots in the second half after scoring all of his 20 points in the first two quarters, matching his playoff career-high. Luol Deng added 17 points, but the Bulls were off target after shooting 57.3 percent in Game 5.

This time, they were 28-of-75 (37.3 percent), with Ben Gordon (19 points) going 7-for-18 and ***k Hinrich (11 points) 3-of-13.

Wallace said the Pistons didn't do anything special against Brown in the second half.

"He was getting the same shots. We were still contesting, he just didn't hit them," Wallace said. "He was on fire in the first half."

The Bulls were trying to become the fourth NBA team to force a Game 7 after falling behind 3-0, and keep alive their hopes of joining another exclusive club. Only the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1975 New York Islanders and 2004 Boston Red Sox have rallied from 3-0 deficits to win a best-of-seven series.

The Pistons put the Bulls in that hole by blowing them out in Games 1 and 2 at home and rallying from 19 down to take Game 3 at the United Center, but instead of a second straight sweep, Detroit got a fight.

Wallace hit a 3-pointer 30 seconds into the second half to start a 12-1 run that put Detroit ahead 55-49.

After a timeout, Gordon hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key to make it 55-52 with 8:17 left in the third quarter, but the Pistons kept coming. Billups hit a 3 to make it 67-59 with 3:29 remaining, and then came a strange sequence.

Andres Nocioni of the Bulls was fouled by Antonio McDyess on a 3-point attempt and got called for a technical foul. A confused Nocioni held his arms out, wondering why, and Billups hit the technical free throw. Nocioni then hit his free throws, making it 68-62.

The lead reached 73-64 when Billups hit three free throws after Hinrich committed his fourth foul of the game and third of the quarter with 2:27 left. But a putback by Deng and a 3 by Gordon cut it to four before Detroit's Jason Maxiell hit a free throw.

The Pistons took control of the boards in the second half, outrebounding Chicago 14-7 in the third quarter and finishing with 48-35 edge.

Notes

Chicago's Ben Wallace showed up at the arena about 1 hour, 15 minutes before tipoff -- just as he did before Game 3 -- and Chris Duhon and Gordon were a few minutes late. Players are supposed to be there 90 minutes before the game. Coach Scott Skiles shrugged it off, saying, "It took (general manager John Paxson) well over an hour to get down here." ... The Pistons shot 13-of-22 from the field in the first quarter. ... The Bulls made their first 14 free throws but then struggled, finishing 24-of-35. ... Brown had a season-high 19 points against the Pistons on Feb. 25, and Golden State on Feb. 9.

[abadani69]

Greg Oden and Kevin Durant are in, and Tayshaun Prince and Tyson Chandler are joining them.

USA Basketball is making a number of changes to this summer's roster, with the Americans adding the two college stars and a couple of defensive specialists but losing Dwyane Wade and some key players because of injuries.

Managing director Jerry Colangelo is set to announce the additions to the roster at a press conference Wednesday in Las Vegas, where the Americans will train and compete this summer in the FIBA Americas tournament.

Jason Kidd, Mike Miller and Utah teammates Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams also will be in camp in July with a chance to make the roster for the Olympic qualifier that runs from Aug. 22-Sept. 2.

Oden was at camp last summer after completing high school but wasn't able to play because of his broken wrist. Expected to be one of the top two picks along with Durant in the NBA draft, he fills Colangelo's desire to add another shot blocker and rebounder.

So does Chandler, the New Orleans center who was second in the NBA in rebounding. Prince is a top defensive forward who helped limit LeBron James to 10 points Monday night in the Pistons' victory over Cleveland.

Wade and Chris Paul were key contributors on the U.S. team that won the bronze medal at the world championships in Japan, but are sidelined after surgeries. Also unable to participate this summer because of injuries are Paul Pierce, Lamar Odom, Gilbert Arenas, Joe Johnson and Brad Miller.

Pierce and Odom also were sidelined last summer.

Kidd was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning team in 2000 and Boozer played for the Americans in Athens in 2004, when they won bronze.

The new additions join 17 players eligible to participate from last year's original pool Colangelo picked for the world championships through the Olympics.

[abadani69]

The Pass has taken on a life of its own.

LeBron James' split-second decision to give up the ball in the final seconds of Game 1 -- instead of shooting -- has become the latest heartbreak in this city's gloomy sports history.

James was again under scrutiny Tuesday for his unselfish play -- a strong pass from under the basket to Donyell Marshall, who missed a wide-open 3-pointer from the corner with 5.9 seconds left. The play sealed Cleveland's fate in a 79-76 loss to the Detroit Pistons in the Eastern Conference final opener.

After watching replays, Cavaliers coach Mike Brown concluded James did the right thing -- setting up Marshall in his favorite spot with plenty of time to set his feet and get off a quality shot.

"Donyell could have had a cup of coffee -- and a sandwich," Brown said.

On Cleveland's last possession, James drove the left side and had gotten a step in the foul lane on Pistons forward Tayshaun Prince a few feet from the rim. But instead of going up strong for a layup or dunk that would have tied it, James chose to whip his pass to Marshall, who made six 3-pointers in Cleveland's Game 6 series-clinching win at New Jersey.

Brown noted that James could have gotten off a shot, but the smarter play was the pass that he made.

"He had drawn three defenders and with LeBron being LeBron, there's a chance he could have made the shot," Brown said. "But he got his teammate a clean, wide-open look. I thought he made a heck of a play. I'll live with Donyell shooting a wide-open 3 any day. That's won us a lot of games."

Marshall's jumper bounced off the back of the rim, and the Pistons ran down the long rebound to preserve the win in a game they were outhustled and outplayed by the underdog Cavs, playing in their first conference final since 1992.

"I thought it was a great play," guard Chauncey Billups said, referring to James' pass. "It was horrible defense by us, but it was a great play."

That sentiment wasn't shared by all.

James, who didn't attempt a single free throw in 45 minutes, was chided by some critics who believe a superstar should never pass up the big shot. Kobe Bryant certainly wouldn't have, and Michael Jordan did only when out of options.

"I've got a problem with the best player on the floor not taking any of these shots down the stretch," TNT analyst Charles Barkley said. "He passed it to (Zydrunas) Ilgauskas twice, he passed it to Larry Hughes and he passed it to Marshall. If I'm the best player on the court, I've got to get a shot. That's not a criticism, that's a fact."

But consider this: If Marshall's shot had dropped, James would have finished with a triple-double and been praised for not forcing the action. His unselfishness would be viewed as his strength -- not a flaw.

Some of the Pistons who spent the entire game focused on stopping James with double- and triple teams are now on his side.

"They want him to be the man so bad and want him to shoot every single time, and that's just unfair," Billups said. "The kid made a great, great play. If they would have made that shot, then they would have been talking about how wonderful the play was. I'm just glad they missed it."

Detroit coach Flip Saunders recalled that when he was with Minnesota he heard the same things about Kevin Garnett.

"I don't think you can fault the play that he made because we had a defensive breakdown, and we left Donyell," he said. "And if Donyell makes that shot, then everyone is saying that LeBron made the right basketball play."

A greater concern for Cleveland may be James' lack of assertiveness at times. He scored just four points in the first half of Game 1 and didn't drive as often as Brown would like.

It was only the second game this season James didn't get to the foul line. Brown, though, felt it wasn't all James' fault.

"There were times that we did attack the rim the right way, and they should have called a foul, but they didn't," he said. "That's how it goes."

[abadani69]

Only two games into the Western Conference finals, Tony Parker and the San Antonio Spurs already are toying with Utah.

Their big tease Tuesday night: Build a big lead, see it shrink a little, then bury the Jazz with 3-pointers.

Parker made it all possible, using his speed to the basket to draw in the defense then finding his shooters time and time again to help the Spurs beat the Jazz 105-96 for a 2-0 series lead.

The San Antonio point guard scored 17 points and had 14 assists, his most in a playoff game. Many came on tosses into the corners, setting up Brent Barry for his trio of 3s in the second quarter and Bruce Bowen for his three 3s in the fourth quarter. San Antonio shot 55.4 percent for the game and was 13-of-26 from behind the arc, setting a franchise playoff record for made 3s.

"That's what they're giving us," Parker said. "Every time I penetrate, they're wide open. They're forcing us to make outside shots and tonight we made those shots."

Tim Duncan had 26 points and 14 rebounds and Manu Ginobili added 17 points as the Spurs moved halfway to reaching the NBA finals for the third time in five years. They got this close by outlasting the Phoenix Suns in a tense second-round series many considered the de facto conference finals, if not the NBA finals; so far, Utah has done little to dismiss that theory.

"We have to stay humble because we just got what's ours," Ginobili said. "We've got to do even better now to get one in Utah. Hopefully we'll show the same approach and concentration."

The Jazz never led in this game, and haven't led since the seventh minute of the opener. While Carlos Boozer bounced back from a poor game with 33 points 15 rebounds, a second straight second-quarter meltdown left Utah trailing by 17 at halftime and 22 a few minutes into the third quarter. They got within seven in the final period, but were repeatedly turned away by big baskets from San Antonio's playoff-tested veterans.

"Every time we made a run, they made a 3," said Deron Williams, who had 26 points and 10 rebounds. "Those guys stepped up and hit shots. We didn't do a good job of defending the 3 and it hurt us."

San Antonio's Michael Finley opened the game with a quick 3-pointer from the left wing and the tone was set. Three of Finley's four baskets wound up coming from behind the arc. Ginobili had three of six, and Bowen and Barry hit nothing but 3s.

"All of us were hitting shots," said Bowen, who was scoreless until his 3 from the left corner, off a pass from Parker, stopped an early fourth-quarter run that had gotten Utah within seven points. He swished another shot from the right corner soon after, and the Jazz never made another strong rally.

"It seemed like every time we got back into the game, we'd shoot ourselves in the foot, kind of self-destruct," coach Jerry Sloan said. "They just took advantage of our inability to see what's going on."

Now the Jazz are headed home trailing 0-2 for the second time this postseason.

They fought back in the first round against Houston, but Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady and the Rockets are no comparison to Duncan, Parker and the Spurs. Plus there's this bit of history to overcome: Only two of the previous 57 teams to lose the first two games of a conference finals have advanced.

"We still have a chance," Williams said. "But I think it's a lot worse t o be down 2-0 to the Spuers than the Rockets. They have championships and guys who know how to win. They're also a much better road team."

Sloan has several days to come up with something. Game 3 isn't until Saturday night and the next two games will be in Salt Lake City, where the Jazz are 6-0 this postseason. They also went 2-0 against the Spurs there during the regular season.

"They're going to be a lot more confident playing in that building," Duncan said. "We're going to need to bring a much better effort than we had here to beat those guys."

Andrei ***ilenko had 15 points and Mehmet Okur scored 11, but the Jazz rarely had two players clicking at the same time. Derek Fisher was 1-of-9 and the bench produced a total of eight points.

San Antonio also outrebounded Utah 44-35, much to the delight of Spurs coach Gregg Popovich.

"I think I said, `Rebound more,' something really magical like that probably," Popovich said.

The Spurs controlled this game almost as easily as the opener, which ended with a deceivingly close 108-100 score. The Jazz had a big finish against a tired, disinterested team, which is why Parker said Monday that San Antonio needed to give Utah "no hope."

Leading only 33-29 in the second quarter, the Spurs broke the game open with a 15-5 spurt, then an 8-2 run. They were up 58-41 at halftime. It could've been more, but Duncan missed a last-second shot that he and Robert Horry walked to the locker room laughing about.

The Jazz, meanwhile, were just shaking their heads. After a 31-16 rout in the second quarter of Game 1, they were outscored 32-17 this time. Their futility was best summed up by Okur hitting the side of the backboard, getting the rebound, then shooting an air ball on an 8-foot hook shot.

Notes

Duncan had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the 11th straight game. ... Boozer cracked 30 points for the fifth time this postseason. ... Utah's Derek Fisher cut the inside of his bottom lip when called for a blocking foul on Ginobili in the first quarter. During a timeout, he showed the bloody mess to official Jack Nies as proof the call should've been against Ginobili. ... Unlike Game 1, this was a sellout. Where were they Sunday? Bowen guessed fans were at church instead -- even though it was an afternoon game. "Special service," he said, smiling. "They were praying for us." ... The Spurs' 18 straight home wins over the Jazz is the longest such streak in the NBA. Second-longest? San Antonio's 17 in a row over Golden State. ... Popovich tied Sloan for fifth on the all-time playoff wins list. Both have 86.

[abadani69]

Tenacious from the start, Utah's Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer gave the home fans exactly what they expected in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals.

Once their teammates got into the act, the Jazz gave the crowd what it really wanted, a 109-83 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night that drastically changes the outlook of the series.

Williams had 31 points and eight assists, and Boozer had 27 points and 12 rebounds, but it was the emergence of their supporting cast in the second half that helped the Jazz enjoy the kind of route the Spurs had the first two games -- and then some. The 26-point margin of defeat was San Antonio's worst of the season.

"To be down against this team 2-zip and then come back and have to do whatever you have to do to win, I thought our guys were able to do that," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "Hopefully it gets their confidence up."

Derek Fisher, Andrei ***ilenko, Jarron Collins and Gordan Giricek all made significant contributions during a 12-3 run in the third quarter that put Utah ahead for good. Paul Millsap added some key baskets in the fourth quarter, and the Jazz improved to 7-0 at home this postseason and 3-0 against the Spurs in Salt Lake City this season.

"There were no night-and-day differences in terms of game plan or strategies, but we were a more active team," said Fisher, who scored 11 points, two more than he had in the previous two games combined. "It just feels good to get a win. It verifies and solidifies the thoughts that our team has always carried -- that we can beat this team. But until you do it, it's hard to continue to tell yourself that."

Mehmet Okur was about the only Utah player whose shot didn't return, but he contributed with his defense against Tim Duncan, who got into foul trouble early and never recovered.

Although he didn't foul out, Duncan played tentatively and wound up with 16 points and eight rebounds. He also had eight turnovers as his run of 20-point, 10-rebound games ended at 11 in a row.

"It's tough to get going and to stay aggressive when you have fouls like that," Duncan said. "They just played a better game than us for a long time. They were aggressive, they were physical, their guys shot well. They had a lot of things happening for them."

Utah's win means there will be no sweep. The loud Jazz fans in their "True Blue" T-shirts can now start dreaming of their team being the first to overcome an 0-2 deficit in the Western Conference finals. Why not? They've already dug out of such a hole once this postseason, against Houston in the first round.

And they get to play another game in Salt Lake City on Monday night. This victory by Utah guarantees there will be a Game 5 in San Antonio on Wednesday night.

"Despite all the odds, we're still here playing," said Williams, showing no effects of a hard foul that sent him to the bench for good with 3:50 left and the outcome decided.

In their first game since being named to Team USA, Williams and Boozer showed why they're rapidly becoming Stockton-and-Malone 2.0.

The speedy point guard and burly power forward kept the Jazz close until their teammates came to life.

Down by four at halftime -- a small victory considering they were down 17 and 18 points midway through the previous two games -- Utah's desire was evident at the start of the third quarter when Williams darted down court with a different energy level than he'd had all series. He missed a layup, but Boozer tipped it in.

San Antonio held its last lead at 60-59. Then Fisher hit a 3-pointer, his first basket of the game also was the first points by a starter other than Williams or Boozer. More rare contributions followed from ***ilenko (his first point of the game), Collins (who hadn't scored in 11 games) and Giricek. Millsap had consecutive baskets early in the fourth quarter that bumped the lead to 12, and San Antonio was never closer than 11 the rest of the game.

"I thought we matched their energy and physicality for a quarter, and at that point they upped the stakes in that area and we folded, both mentally and physically," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "The score of the game is not really all that important. How we play is what matters and we didn't play very well. They played better than we did in a lot of areas."

San Antonio's inability to move toward a sweep shouldn't be a surprise. In winning three titles since 1999, the Spurs have gone 4-0 in only one of the 16 series they've won, the lone exception coming in a first-round series three years ago.

Tony Parker led San Antonio with 25 points and seven assists. Manu Ginobili was the only other double-digit scorer with 14 as the Spurs went from shooting 55 percent the first two games to making only 44 percent this time. After hitting 13 3-pointers last game, San Antonio had only seven.

Fisher and Giricek finished with 11 points each. Millsap and Harpring each scored eight and Collins had seven.

Notes

Actress Eva Longoria, Parker's fiancee, was booed when showed on the overhead monitor during the second quarter. ... This was Duncan's 132nd career playoff game, passing Kobe Bryant for sixth on the career list. ... San Antonio's Robert Horry hit his first 3-pointer of the series. ... Utah improved to 9-0 all-time against San Antonio in home playoff games. ... A Duncan-led Spurs team has blown a 2-0 lead before -- in the second round in 2004, when Fisher was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers and memorably changed the series with a long 3-pointer at the buzzer of Game 5. ... The New York Knicks are the only team to have blown a 2-0 lead in a conference finals, doing it in 1971 against Baltimore and 1993 against Chicago. Dallas did it in the NBA finals last year. ... Jazz coach Jerry Sloan moved back ahead of Popovich for sole possession of fifth on the postseason wins list. This was his 87th.

[abadani69]

LeBron James didn't wait for the last play. He did all he needed to do before the clock got anywhere near zero.

James had 32 points, nine rebounds and nine assists in the most important game of his young NBA career, helping Cleveland to an 88-82 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night to pull the Cavaliers within 2-1 in the Eastern Conference finals.

James, rising to the occasion with a hometown crowd hanging on his every move, scored 12 points in the fourth quarter and rookie Daniel Gibson came up with several key plays down the stretch to help his more celebrated teammate.

In Game 1 at Detroit, James was criticized for not taking the Cavs' final shot. In Game 2, James was swarmed by defenders and couldn't get off a clean attempt in the foul lane in the waning moments of the Pistons' second straight 79-76 win.

James left nothing to chance this time, hitting a 3-pointer with 2:34 left and a 16-foot jumper in the last 23 seconds to give Cleveland its first win in the conference finals since May 25, 1992, against Chicago.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas scored 16 points, Sasha Pavlovic 13 and Drew Gooden 12 for the Cavs, who can even the series with a win in Game 4 on Tuesday night.

Rasheed Wallace had 16 points and Chris Webber 15 to pace the Pistons, who were the East's best road team during the regular season and came in 4-1 so far in these playoffs outside of Auburn Hills, Mich.

Detroit, which needed seven games to put away the Cavs in last year's playoffs, could have effectively ended this series with another road win.

James refused to allow it.

Cleveland's superstar made sure he was ready for one of this championship-starved city's biggest nights of basketball.

James broke from his usual pregame routine, and after arriving three hours before tipoff, he shot 3-pointers and jumpers on the arena's main floor for the first time this season.

"I've got to be ready," said James, who wore a black sleeveless "Witness" T-shirt during his workout. "This is probably the biggest game of my life, and probably one of the biggest games in Cavaliers history. I've got recognize that. I have to be prepared to go out there.

"It's all out."

He played like it.

With the scored tied 68-all, James made another of those legacy-defining plays. On the left side, he burst through and down the lane to deliver a posterizing dunk on Wallace, who fouled Cleveland's forward.

James missed the free throw, but fed Ilgauskas for a layup on the Cavs' next trip to make it 72-68 with 6:22 remaining. Moments later, he whipped a pass to Gibson, who drained a 3-pointer to make it 77-72.

With Cleveland clinging to a five-point lead, Gibson stole the ball from Tayshaun Prince, and on the Cavs' next possession, James stepped back and swished a 3-pointer to make it 84-76, sending the sellout crowd of 20,562 into a frenzy.

The Pistons wouldn't go quietly and scored six straight points before James responded again, driving the right side and hitting a tough jumper. After Prince missed, Drew Gooden hit two free throws to close the scoring.

As the clock expired, James took the ball and handed it to referee Tom Washington, perhaps his most satisfying pass of the night.

Notes

The game was delayed in the first quarter because of condensation dropping from the scoreboard following the Cavs' over-the-top pregame spectacle complete with giant, fire-spewing swords and smoke machines. ... The Cavaliers, who lost to Boston (six games) in 1976 and Chicago (six) in 1992 are 5-10 in the Eastern Conference finals. ... Detroit coach Flip Saunders, who grew in the Cleveland suburb of Cuyahoga Heights, always loves coming home. "It was good to go see mom and dad, and good to have some pierogies," he cracked. ... Detroit's Kid Rock sat courtside, as did Browns linebacker Willie McGinest. ... Hughes slightly sprained his left foot in the first quarter. ... James has at least seven assists in 12 of 13 playoff games.