The Detroit Pistons took advantage of what seemed to be a little help from the scorer's table and went on beat the Orlando Magic.
Chauncey Billups scored 28 points, 3 on a disputed shot at the end of the third quarter, and Detroit got past Orlando for a 100-93 win last night at the Palace at Auburn Hills, Mich., and a 2-0 lead in the second-round series.
"It's tough to be on the other end of that play," Billups said. "But I'll take it."
Billups officially made a 3-pointer with 0.5 seconds left in the third, ending a play that started with 5.1 seconds left and seemed to take a fraction of a second longer using replays the officials didn't use during a 5-minute delay.
The shot put Detroit ahead, 78-76. Lead official Steve Javie declined to be interviewed by a pool reporter during a timeout, and ignored another reporter shouting to speak with him after the game ended.
"They had to estimate how much time [was left] and they estimated 4.6 seconds," Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy said. "That's almost funny. What can you do? They were put in a very tough situation on that call."
Even though TNT - a broadcast partner of the NBA - had the ability to show a real-time replay with a clock superimposed on the screen, the league's replay rules don't allow for reviewing a play to determine when the clock started.
"Steve Javie told me that with the technology they have, they should be able to go over and look at that," Van Gundy said. "They did not have that available. He was frustrated by that - probably not quite as much as us."
The Magic still had a chance to win after trailing by 14 in the first half. Orlando had the ball down by 2 points late in the game, but Rashard Lewis missed a running scoop shot, Dwight Howard just missed on a putback, and Hedo Turkoglu couldn't grab the offensive rebound.
Magic reserve Keyon Dooling fouled Richard Hamilton before the ensuing pass was made from the sideline, giving Detroit a free throw - made by Hamilton - and the ball. Billups then made two free throws to put Detroit ahead by 5 points with 10.9 seconds left to seal the win.
Howard bounced back from a lackluster game with 22 points, 18 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
Jameer Nelson scored 22 points, making five 3-pointers, before fouling out with 1:23 left. Lewis overcame a slow start to score 20 points. Maurice Evans had 13 points and Turkoglu added 12, putting each of the Magic's starters in double figures.
Hornets 102, Spurs 84 - Shutting down David West only gave visiting San Antonio front-row seats for the Chris Paul show.
With razzle-dazzle dribbles and a driving floater that couldn't miss, Paul had 30 points and 12 assists, leading New Orleans to a 2-0 lead over the Spurs in their second-round series.
Peja Stojakovic hit five 3-pointers and scored 25 points for the Hornets, who've won both games by wide margins in becoming the first team to put San Antonio in an 0-2 playoff hole since 2001, when the Spurs were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference finals.
