Wrong team to trail Pistons clinch second straight Central Division title By SEKOU SMITH The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 03/21/06 Auburn Hills, Mich. — If the Hawks had turned the ball over incessantly, dug a 21-point hole and then played lights out the way they did in the second half against any team other than the Detroit Pistons, they'd have had at least a puncher's chance. But they weren't anywhere else but the Palace of Auburn Hills on Monday night. And they did all those things against the Pistons, the NBA's most methodical, consistent team this season. Instead of rallying for one of their trademark late-game wins with their gutsy second half, the Hawks had to settle for a 91-84 loss and watching the Pistons celebrate clinching their second straight Central Division title before a raucous sellout crowd of 22,076. "We just need to keep grinding," said Hawks co-captain Al Harrington, who led his team with 23 points and six rebounds. "We had our opportunities. But that lead we gave them was just too much. If we could have withstood that run of theirs before halftime, I think we would have been right there. "But this is the one team in the league you can't spot a 21-point lead and expect to be able to walk out of this place smiling. It's not going to happen. Not for us or any other team in this league." Playing their second game in as many days, the Hawks (21-44) never seemed to get untracked. They beat Orlando in overtime Sunday at Philips Arena on Zaza Pachulia's tip-in of a Joe Johnson missed layup with 2.4 seconds left. But they were never close enough for such late-game heroics Monday, despite holding the high-powered Pistons to 19 points in each of the final two quarters. "They've got the total package," said Johnson, who struggled from the floor (8-for-18) early but finished with 17 points, six assists and four rebounds. "They've got the great low-post game and the great outside game. And then they work harder on defense than any other team in the league. So it's tough. You get behind and try and fight back, but they're right there on you the entire way. There's no room to breathe when you need it, not even for a second." While the Hawks were busy mounting their comeback after halftime, the Pistons, a league-best 53-13, were busy going through their paces. Rasheed Wallace (26 points, eight rebounds) and Ben Wallace (13 rebounds, three blocks) did the work inside while Tayshaun Prince (18 points), Chauncey Billups (14) and Richard Hamilton (14) did the damage from the perimeter. The Pistons also benefited from the Hawks' 17 turnovers (for 22 points) and futile showing from the free-throw line (4-for-12). And the Hawks' tired legs didn't help much, either. "We had plenty of time to rest," Harrington said. "I don't want us to use that as an excuse, because we had the life we needed in the second half. We just didn't find our mark in the last four minutes of the first quarter." That was when the Pistons turned a tie game into a 10-point lead with 2.2 seconds to play on Hamilton's 3-point play. "We have a day to get our rest and then we have to come out and grind against Philly [Wednesday]," Harrington said. "We know we don't have any room for error, so we have to turn it up every night from here on out." 资料来源 http://www.ajc.com/hawks/content/sports/hawks/stories/0321hawks.html --

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