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Pistons 96, Spurs 79
Richard Hamilton scored 24 points and Chauncey Billups added 20 as the Detroit Pistons hauled themselves back into the NBA Finals with a 96-79 Game Three victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.
Ben Wallace added 15 points and hauled down 11 rebounds as the Pistons bounced back from two lopsided losses in San Antonio. Wallace also had five blocks and three steals and along with his team mates, showed much more energy at home than they did on the road. The Spurs still hold a 2-1 lead over the defending NBA champions with Game Four of the best-of-seven series in Auburn Hills Thursday. "I think we figured out how hard we have to play," Detroit coach Larry Brown said. "Their energy has been incredible and I don't think we realized we were in the finals against a really great team that's unbelievably well coached. "It's one game. Now that game is over. I think our guys have unbelievable respect for them and realize it's going to take our very best to make this a competitive series." Antonio McDyess added 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Pistons, who trailed 42-41 at the half. However, Detroit's tenacious defense took control in the second half and a balanced scoring attack had the Spurs on their heels for the remainder of the game. The Pistons rallied to lead by five points after three quarters and out-scored the Spurs 26-14 in a dominant fourth quarter, looking like a completely different team than they did in two double-digit losses at San Antonio. "We have to be the ones that are aggressive, and I think we did that tonight," Hamilton said. "We wanted to come out and play good with our fans and play with a lot of energy." LOSE TOUCH The boisterous support at The Palace of Auburn Hills certainly made a difference in the second half, as the Pistons delighted a sell-out crowd, the 83rd in succession. Tony Parker had 21 points for the Spurs and Tim Duncan added 14 points and 10 rebounds, but the NBA champions of 1999 and 2003 began to lose touch at the start of the fourth quarter and offered even less resistance in the closing minutes. "I think that they did a great job of forcing turnovers tonight," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. "They were very aggressive and very focused. They won the mental battle tonight." Duncan was just five-for-15 from the floor and like the rest of his team mates, struggled with his form all night. "We just couldn't get anything going in the offensive end," Duncan said. "I had some shots and just couldn't knock them down." San Antoinio's Argentine guard Manu Ginobili, who dominated the opening games of the series, injured his knee in the first minute and was ineffective the rest of the night, scoring just seven points in 30 minutes.
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