The Celtics lost for the second time in three games, again collapsing in the late going. Without Garnett (knee strain), who is expected to miss the team's visit to New Jersey Wednesday and also home games against Cleveland (Friday) and Orlando (next Sunday), the Celtics lacked a shot-blocker and also a perimeter matchup against Rasheed Wallace.
Paul Pierce (26 points) stretched the Celtics' lead to 3 points with 5:02 remaining. But the Pistons outscored the Celtics, 19-6, in the final 4:36.
For most of the season, the Celtics have had a knack for dominating the opposition with defensive intensity in the final minutes of games, but late-game collapses have cost them recently. They were outscored, 5-1, in the final minute against the Clippers in a 93-91 loss Feb. 25 and 7-2 in the final minutes after Garnett earlier had hopped off the court in a 90-85 defeat at Utah Feb. 19.
"It was definitely a winnable game, we had the lead in the fourth," said Pierce, who played all but 18 seconds. "The guys we had out there in the stretch are guys that have been here. We have guys who have been here down the stretch who know how to win games the way we're supposed to win the game."
The Pistons shut off Ray Allen (2 for 10) with overplays and trapping defenses. Richard Hamilton, who like Allen attended the University of Connecticut, set the defensive tone and also scored 25 points as the Pistons got their offense in gear without Iverson (stiff back). Detroit was 34 for a season-high 40 free throw attempts.
"You can tell they're playing the system they played before Iverson got there," Pierce said of the Pistons' early-season trade of Chauncey Billups to Denver for Iverson. "They run a lot of down screens with Rip [Hamilton] and they run a lot of high pick and rolls with [Rodney] Stuckey. That's what Chauncey used to do. Those guys that are out on the court, they're comfortable with each other. When Iverson is out there, they're still trying to figure out how to use each other, how to all be successful."
The Celtics, meanwhile, were struggling to do the same.
