NEW YORK, (Reuters):
RASHEED WALLACE scored 24 points and the Detroit Pistons got three key offensive rebounds in the dying seconds to edge the Cleveland Cavaliers 84-82 in National Basketball Association play on Friday night in Cleveland.
Richard Hamilton added 17 points for the Pistons, who forced a seventh and deciding game in the best-of-seven series today at Auburn Hills.
In Dallas, Manu Ginobili scored 30 points and had 10 rebounds as the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs stayed alive in the Western Conference with a 91-86 win in their Game Six.
That best-of-seven series is tied 3-3, with Game Seven in San Antonio on Monday night. Phoenix and the Los Angeles Clippers are tied 3-3 in the other West series.
The winners of the best-of-seven Eastern Conference final will play the Miami Heat for a berth in the NBA Finals.
KEY FOUL SHOT
The two-time defending Eastern Conference champions needed three offensive rebounds in the final minute after three misses and a key foul shot by Chauncey Billups to finally put away the stubborn Cavaliers and deny them the series upset.
"We knew we had to come to play today. We knew they were going to be excited. We had to come out and match their energy," Wallace said.
"They beat us three straight times, the only team to do that to us this year, and damn sure we couldn't make it four straight and go out like that."
Wallace said he is still confident the Pistons will prevail now the series is headed back to Detroit after the Pistons had lost three straight.
"We're going to go out there (Sunday) and play our basketball. It's going to be bananas in the Palace," Wallace added.
The win for Detroit still wasn't assured until the final buzzer, as LeBron James went to the free throw line with 1.4 seconds left, making his first shot and deliberately missing the
second.
HIT THE RIM
The rebound from that shot was nearly tipped into the basket, but hit the rim and missed, ending the game.
"We're excited about going home," Detroit coach Flip Saunders said.
"We had guys that made plays. We were able to come up with a big win. There's a lot of people who thought we were dead, so we'll go home breathing."
Billups and Tayshaun Prince both scored 15 points for the Pistons, while Ben Wallace had 10 rebounds and four points.
James had 32 points and 11 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were cheered on by a rabid crowd looking to see an upset.
Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 16 points and six rebounds for Cleveland, while Drew Gooden scored 13 points and had eight rebounds.
In Dallas, Tim Duncan added 24 points and eight rebounds for the Spurs, who made all 15 free throws in the second half to rebound from a six-point halftime deficit to extend the series.
"We just kind of stuck with it. Guys just stepped up and made plays," Duncan said after the game.
DIFFERENCE IN THE GAME
Michael Finley added 16 points for the Spurs and said his team's defensive play down the stretch was the difference in the game.
"This was a great game and we made some great stops down the stretch to get the win," Finley said.
San Antonio trailed 47-41 at the half, but wound up making 29 of their 34 free throws to deny the Mavericks a chance at closing out the series at home.
Dirk Nowitzki had 26 points and 21 rebounds for the Mavs, but he missed a key three-point attempt in the dying seconds that could have tied the game.
Josh Howard added 17 points for the Mavericks, who played without the suspended Jason Terry, who punched Finley in Game Five.
