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Thursday, Jan 19,
8:00pm
TV: TNT
Radio: ESPN 1050
Pistons face former coach Brown
Preview:NEW YORK (Ticker) -- The league-leading Detroit Pistons pay a visit to former coach Larry Brown and the New York Knicks on Thursday.
Detroit won a 106-98 decision in the first meeting between the teams at the Palace of Auburn Hills on December 2. Richard Hamilton scored a season-high 40 points and the Pistons shot better than 53 percent from the floor.
Brown guided Detroit to NBA Finals appearances the last two seasons and to the 2004 title. But the team elected to buy out his contract after reports surfaced that he was pondering another job and hired Flip Saunders.
Chauncey Billups scored 23 points and Hamilton added 21 in the Pistons' 117-89 blowout victory at Atlanta on Wednesday. Detroit had six players score in double figures, as it shot 52 percent (12-of-23) from the arc.
The Pistons own an NBA-best 15-3 road record, including 6-1 against Eastern Conference opponents. They have won five straight overall.
Jamal Crawford scored 19 points and Quentin Richardson added 17 as the Knicks lost in overtime, 106-104, at Chicago on Chicago. New York has dropped its last three games after winning a season-high six in a row.
The Knicks may by without the services of forward-center Antonio Davis, who ran into the stands during the overtime at Chicago to aid his wife, who apparently was being harassed by fans.
Knicks point guard Stephon Marbury - the club's leading scorer at 18.9 points per game - will miss his second straight game due to a shoulder injury.
Really wanted to see Marbury play this game. Him vs Billups would of been entertaining. I just hope Nate doesn't get into foul trouble like last night.
FINAL SCORE
Knicks - 79
Pistons - 105
Box Score
Hamilton, Wallace Lead Pistons Past Knicks
Recap:-- Richard Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace made it another tough night for Larry Brown.
Hamilton scored 26 points and Wallace added 23 as the Detroit Pistons rolled to their sixth straight win, a 105-79 victory over the New York Knicks.
The game marked Brown's second against one of his many former teams. On December 2, the Pistons posted a 106-98 victory over Brown and the Knicks.
In two seasons in Detroit, Brown guided the Pistons to the 2004 title and within one quarter of a repeat championship. However, Detroit and the nomadic Brown parted ways in July, negotiating a buyout on the remaining three years of his five-year contract.
Playing the second end of a back-to-back after a 117-98 victory at Atlanta on Wednesday in which its bench scored 48 points, league-leading Detroit (32-5) overwhelmed New York virtually the entire way.
The Pistons used an 18-5 run to end the first quarter to open a 28-13 lead. They shot 57 percent (13-of-23) in the period.
A layup by Eddy Curry with 3:29 left in the first half pulled the Knicks within 35-29. But the Pistons responded with a 13-4 surge to close the half.
Wallace drained back-to-back 3-pointers and Hamilton made a shot from the arc and hit a short jumper during the burst.
Hamilton scored eight points in a 15-5 burst in the third quarter, pushing the lead to 66-43 with 3:18 left in the period.
Hamilton went 11-of-16 from the floor and Wallace made four 3-pointers.
Tayshaun Prince added 18 points - including four shots from the arc - and Chauncey Billups handed out 13 assists for Detroit.
The Pistons made 12-of-25 attempts from 3-point range.
Curry had 26 points and eight rebounds and rookie Channing Frye added 15 and seven for the Knicks, who committed 20 turnovers.
ASAP
