Pistons Pound Miami 109-99
AUBURN HILLS (97.1 THE TICKET/AP) - Will Bynum scored a team high 25 points guiding the Detroit Pistons to victory over the Miami Heat 109-99 on Friday night.
As heard on 97. 1 The Ticket - the Pistons led the Heat for most of the game - pushing a half-time lead of six points to a game ending 10 points.
Detroit's bench was again outstanding. The Pistons scored the first 14 points of the second and finally took a 41-39 lead on Villanueva's 3-pointer.
The bench - specifically Villanueva, Bynum, Drummond and Daye - scored 36 of Detroit's 41 points in the quarter, and the Pistons went into halftime with a 58-52 lead.
And that was only the beginning. Miami didn't start the third quarter any better than the second, allowing nine straight points to fall behind by 15. Greg Monroe's basket made it 76-59, and although the Heat increased the pressure defensively, they didn't always get the results they wanted.
After Shane Battier and James made consecutive 3-pointers to pull Miami within nine, James thought he'd knocked the ball away from Jason Maxiell cleanly near midcourt. But a foul was called and Maxiell made one of two free throws to make it 79-69.
It was 81-71 after three.
Miami was without Dwyane Wade, suspended for a game by the NBA for flailing his leg and making contact with a Charlotte player Wednesday.
The Detroit reserves, who scored 85 points in a loss to Atlanta on Wednesday, contributed 64 on Friday. Charlie Villanueva had 18 and Austin Daye added 11, helping the Pistons snap Miami's six-game winning streak.
The Heat scored the game's first 10 points and led by 15 after one quarter, but the momentum shifted for good when the Pistons outscored Miami 41-20 in the second.
Chris Bosh had 28 points for Miami.
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(TM and © Copyright 2012 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
