Miami Heat 92, Detroit Pistons 65: Pistons just miss record embarrassment
Terry Foster / The Detroit News
Auburn Hills -- A comedy act headlined The Palace Friday night, starring Tayshaun Prince, Richard Hamilton and the rest of the Pistons.
The Pistons were so bad during a 92-65 loss to the Heat that fans didn't have the heart to boo the poor Pistons. They laughed at them instead.
Bronx cheers at a basketball game? You bet.
It happened twice when Prince finally made a bucket in the fourth quarter and it happened again when Kwame Brown made a free throw after bricking his first four.
Some wise guy screamed: "Bring back (former coach) Michael Curry."
The only thing missed was a laugh track. And the only saving grace is the Pistons somehow avoided setting another franchise low for points scored when Charlie Villanueva hit a free throw with 25 seconds remaining in the game.
Most of the body parts were back when Ben Gordon played after missing the last nine games with a groin strain. He finished with 10 points, but that wasn't nearly enough to help the Pistons avoid a four-game losing streak.
They still can't shoot or score and the chemistry seems out of kilter. The Pistons did not compete beyond the first quarter. The Heat ran past and through the Pistons and led by as many as 29 points.
"You get hit in the mouth, you get right back up and get hit again," Pistons coach John Kuester said. "That is what you do, keep working hard and good things will happen."
The Pistons did not work hard and hardly anything good happened to them. They got clubbed on the boards, 52-25, by the Heat and shot just 39.4 percent from the floor.
Things got so easy for the Heat that Dwyane Wade played only 24 minutes and finished with 22 points. Miami shot better from 3-point range (66.7 percent) than the Pistons from the free throw line (63.2 percent).
Those are not funny numbers and they tend to lead to a team that is lacking chemistry and cohesion.
"Everybody thinks it is easy and guys are just going to fit in," Pistons center Ben Wallace said. "It is tough to build chemistry with the number of injuries that we've had. They are going out and playing hard but we've got to get them up to speed and get them on the right page. That takes being out on the floor. When you are off the floor, it is tough to come back and do what you've been doing."
The Heat broke open the game with a 12-0 second-quarter run to go up 47-31. The jokes from the crowd began during a 20-6 third-quarter spurt.
That is when much of the crowd left.
Hamilton did not shoot well, missing 10 of 14 shots and finishing with eight points. Charlie Villanueva led the Pistons with 15 points and Prince chipped in 10.
"I don't think there is a lack of confidence," Hamilton said. "But I just think guys are still learning."
