Both teams, though, were ranked number two in their respective conferences, with the Phoenix Suns ranked number one in the West and the Miami Heat ranked number one in the East. Nevertheless, several Pistons free throws were necessary in the final moments of the game to put a win out of reach for the Spurs. File: /home/bq60o9f5vzd9/public_html/wikizero.com/application/controllers/Main.php

The Celtics beat the Lakers at Boston Garden in 1984, the Lakers beat the Pistons at the Great Western Forum in 1988 and the Rockets beat the Knicks at The Summit in 1994. File: /home/bq60o9f5vzd9/public_html/wikizero.com/index.php

Coming into the game, it seemed as if the resilient Pistons, who survived two elimination games against Miami in the Eastern Finals, would come out strong and give the Spurs a challenge.

San Antonio 23 24 20 19 86 San Antonio (West) 84 97 79 71 96 86 81 4 Detroit 23 19 21 26 6 95 File: /home/bq60o9f5vzd9/public_html/wikizero.com/application/controllers/Main.php File: /home/bq60o9f5vzd9/public_html/wikizero.com/application/controllers/Main.php After winning Game 1, they fell behind 2-1 after three games and 3-2 after five games, but still rebounded in Game 6 on their home court.

Others have countered that Detroit's defense outplayed the Lakers' offense, thereby vindicating the Detroit franchise. Team 1 2 3 4 Tot. À l’approche des finales de 2005, les Spurs avaient remporté deux titres (Les Spurs et les Pistons ont tous deux été classés au deuxième rang de leurs conférences respectives, les Les Spurs ont traversé les séries éliminatoires avec facilité, par rapport aux Pistons.
The Spurs won the series 4 games to 3 in the first NBA Finals to go to a Game 7 since 1994. Game 7 - June 23, Thursday @San Antonio 8:00 CDT San Antonio 81, Detroit 74: San Antonio wins series 4-3 The 2-0 lead proved a daunting challenge to Detroit, historically. Detroit Pistons roster Such "battleline-crossing" fans often receive abuse everywhere they travel, especially if they can be identified by team uniforms or other gear. Tim Duncan became the fourth player in NBA history to win the NBA Finals MVP a third time joining Magic Johnson, Micheal Jordan and Shaquille O'Neal.

He also reports that Bird received similar attention in Los Angeles. Le champion de la conférence Est, les Pistons de Détroit rencontrent le champion de la conférence Ouest, les Spurs de San Antonio. The Miami Heat defeated the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, four games to two. While the Pistons went cold from behind the arc, not scoring a single 3-point basket, the Spurs made 11 3-pointers, including 4 each by Manu Ginobili and Bruce Bowen, who did not score a point in game 1. This has been used in virtually all Major League Baseball best-of-seven playoff series since the founding of the league. Despite the tough challenge, the Pistons pulled through, and came out with several key steals and two scoring runs in the third quarter, then netted many insurance points in the fourth to win a big game which was a de facto must-win. The Pistons were looking to become to first team to ever win the last 2 games on the road, after being down 3-2. In that series, after trailing 1-0 after a home upset, they won four straight. Detroit next had to defeat conference winner Miami and star player Shaquille O'Neal. After two games, the highest noise level recorded was 114 decibels, when Tim Duncan was introduced in Game 2, six away from the alleged maximum marking on the meter. These ceremonies (usually singing, performances, etc) take up some time, so the actual tip-off usually does not take place until approximately 20 minutes after the scheduled start time.

Detroit (East) 69 76 96 102 95 95 74 3
Further, the Detroit team-oriented offense often dominated a Lakers team ridden with selfish play and the well-publicized tension between superstars Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. In the history of the NBA, in the 153 times when a team with home court advantage was up 2-0 in a series, only seven times has the other team rebounded to win the series.