NBA Game Summary - Philadelphia at Detroit

Auburn Hills, MI (Basketball News) - Richard Hamilton scored 10 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, as the Detroit Pistons captured their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series against Philadelphia with an 88-78 victory over the 76ers in Game 5 at The Palace.

The defending champion Pistons won the best-of-seven series, 4-1, and will meet the winner of the Boston/Indiana matchup in the conference semifinals. The Pacers defeated the Celtics on Tuesday to take a 3-2 lead in that series.

Chauncey Billups also netted 23 points for Detroit, which has won seven straight playoff games at home. Billups was 14-of-14 from the foul line. Tayshaun Prince collected 14 points and nine rebounds and Ben Wallace added 11 points and 13 boards in the win.

Allen Iverson paced Philadelphia with 34 points and seven assists. He played the majority of the fourth quarter with a sore ankle. Samuel Dalembert contributed 11 points and 10 rebounds for the 76ers, who fell to 0-6 all-time at The Palace in the postseason.

"I think this series was really a good thing for us," said Pistons coach Larry Brown. "I don’t know if there’s anybody like Allen (Iverson) in the way he plays and the way he competes. It really prepares you for a playoff series because you understand great players in the playoffs and stars have to step up."

Chris Webber finished with 11 points and eight rebounds for Philadelphia. However, he was just 4-of-16 from the floor.

Detroit trailed by a point entering the fourth quarter, but opened the period with a 6-0 run to take a 66-61 lead.

The 76ers were able to pull within 72-69 on Andre Iguodala’s jumper with 7:11 remaining, but the Pistons answered with an 8-0 surge to increase the margin to a commanding 11. Hamilton and Antonio McDyess each had four points during the decisive spurt.

Philadelphia got as close as six at 82-76 with just under a minute left, but Detroit sealed the game at the foul line, as Billups sank all six of his free throw attempts in the final 46.6 seconds.

The 76ers used an 11-2 spurt in the first quarter, ignited by Kyle Korver’s three-pointer, to take an 18-11 lead. Detroit then battled back and closed within 24-21 by the end of the period. Billups’ tip-in in the closing second made it a three-point game after 12 minutes.

The Pistons then scored six of the first eight points of the second quarter to move in front 27-26.

After Philadelphia went on a 9-3 run, capped by Willie Green’s jumper, to regain a five-point advantage, Detroit responded with a 13-3 burst, culminated by Hamilton’s layup, to grab a 43-38 lead with 2:05 left in the period.

The 76ers then received a free throw from Webber, a layup from Iverson and a three-pointer from Aaron McKie and went to the locker room with a 44-43 edge. Iverson ended the first half with 15 points, while Hamilton led the Pistons in the opening 24 minutes with 11.

A jumper by Iguodala and a three-pointer by Iverson to begin the third quarter extended Philadelphia’s advantage to 49-43. Detroit again rallied and tied the game at 54-54 on Hamilton’s basket with 3:21 remaining in the period.

The 76ers eventually held a 61-60 lead after 36 minutes.

"I feel like doing it again," said Iverson. "I feel like going through it all over again. I feel good about our effort. I feel bad right now because we just lost but I saw a lot of positive things this year with our team and I’m looking forward to next year and learning and recouping from what went on in this series."