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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) – After the morning shootaround,
Detroit Pistons forward Joe Smith could barely walk.
|  | | Detroit's Bill Owens, left, and Mikki Moore give Jamal Crawford little chance to get this loose ball. |
By Friday night, he was taking apart the Chicago Bulls.
Smith had played a total of four minutes in Detroit's previous
two games because of a sprained ankle, but scored 16 points in
Detroit's 108-75 rout of the Bulls.
"After the shootaround, I didn't think there was a chance he
could play," Pistons coach George Irvine said. "But (strength
coach) Arnie (Kander) worked his magic, and he had a really nice
game."
The loss extended Chicago's franchise-record road losing streak
to 17 games.
"It looked like a recreation game after the first quarter,"
Chicago coach Tim Floyd said. "I thought we would get settled
down, but it never really worked out for us."
Detroit won for just the third time in 11 games. The 33-point
margin of victory was the Pistons' largest of the season.
"This was a team we should beat and a game we should win, but
it is still nice to get this one," said Jerry Stackhouse, who led
the Pistons with 23 points. "I wish we could bottle this up and
use it again on Sunday."
Ben Wallace had eight points and 15 rebounds in just 25 minutes
for Detroit. Three reserves scored in double figures for the
Pistons.
"We got solid minutes from everyone tonight," Irvine said.
"Even guys like Billy Owens, who didn't score, did a lot of other
things to help us win. That's what happens when we have Joe in
there -- he gives us a lot of depth."
Ron Artest led Chicago with 16 points, and Elton Brand added 15.
Brand scored 12 points on 6-for-8 shooting in the first quarter,
but was 1-for-7 the rest of the way.
"We've been playing very well of late, so I'm surprised,"
Brand said. "We got pushed back in the transition game, and we
just didn't play well."
The Pistons pulled out to a 55-44 lead by halftime in a closely
contested first half. Detroit shot 54.8 percent for the half.
Chicago shot 39.5 percent.
Detroit continued to control play in the third quarter. The
Pistons opened the period with a 21-9 run that widened their lead
to 76-53. Smith led the surge with eight points.
Detroit built its lead to 85-60 by the end of the third period
and cruised to the victory.
Game notes
The loss was Chicago's fifth in a row to Detroit, a far cry
from the Bulls' 19-game winning streak over the Pistons during the
Jordan years. ... Detroit is now 9-0 against Chicago, New Jersey
and Seattle, and just 14-39 against the rest of the NBA. ...
Chicago failed in its attempt for a second two-game winning streak
of the season.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Chicago Clubhouse
Detroit Clubhouse
RECAPS
Indiana 99
Cleveland 84
Philadelphia 108
Atlanta 103
Boston 104
Washington 72
Miami 86
Minnesota 79
New Jersey 96
New York 83
Detroit 108
Chicago 75
Dallas 102
Golden State 73
Utah 107
Phoenix 95
Toronto 110
Seattle 99
Vancouver 95
Portland 85
San Antonio 93
LA Lakers 89
Sacramento 110
Denver 104
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