True champions never say die. Facing elimination and a hostile crowd on the road, the defending NBA champion Detroit Pistons managed to get clutch play from Rasheed Wallace down the stretch to earn a 95-86 win in game 6 of the NBA finals. That evens the series at 3-3 and sets up a seventh and deciding game Thursday night in San Antonio.
Thursday night's game will be the first game 7 in the NBA finals since 1994.
The Pistons got balanced scoring. Richard Hamilton had 23 points with Chauncey Billups close behind with 21. Wallace added 16 points including some baskets when it counted in the late stages of the fourth quarter to lead the Pistons to the win.
After the first four games were blowouts, the last two have been tight. Game 6 featured 23 lead changes before Detroit pulled ahead to stay early in the fourth quarter.
It was a big win for Pistons coach Larry Brown who won his 100th career NBA playoff game. That puts him alone in third place in league history. Brown had been tied with the legendary Red Auerbach of the Boston Celtics with 99 prior to Tuesday night's win.
Detroit is looking to become the first team to win the final two games of a finals series on the road to win the NBA title. The long odds don't bother Rasheed Wallace.
'We can fight any odds,' Wallace said after the game. 'You know, a lot of people thought we were going to be out tonight, but — they had their Cristal ready and all that stuff, but — hey, we're going to pop it Thursday.'
Tim Duncan had 21 points and 15 rebounds for the Spurs while Manu Ginobili also added 21 for San Antonio.
So now, the NBA title will come down to one game, winner take all. San Antonio has the home court advantage but Detroit has the momentum. All that is certain is that Thursday night, one team will be crowned NBA champions.
