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Strong 2nd Half Gives Pistons Game 1

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The Associated Press

Published: May 4, 2008

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Hedo Turkoglu's uncontested dunk early in the second half gave the Orlando Magic their first lead.

Less than a minute later, the Detroit Pistons took over.
Chauncey Billups had 19 points, seven assists and played a key role in the decisive run of the game, leading Detroit to a 91-72 win against Orlando on Saturday night in Game 1 of the second-round series.
Dwight Howard had a relatively quiet night with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocks after being the first player to score 20 points and grab 20 rebounds in three playoff games since Wilt Chamberlain did it in 1972.

Howard played for much of the second half with blue tape wrapped around his left hand, seemingly to protect his thumb he injured after trying to grab a rebound.

After Turkoglu's dunk and the ensuing timeout Pistons coach Flip Saunders called, the Magic took their last lead with 10:08 left in the third quarter.

Then, Detroit went on its first of two big runs in the second half to take a 64-49 lead.

ORLANDO (72) - Turkoglu 8-16 1-3 18, Lewis 9-20 0-0 18, Howard 5-11 2-7 12, Nelson 3-8 1-2 7, Evans 2-3 0-0 4, Bogans 1-5 0-0 3, Dooling 1-5 5-6 7, Gortat 1-2 0-0 2, Redick 0-3 0-0 0, Garrity 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 30-74 10-20 72.

DETROIT (91) - Prince 6-16 0-0 12, Maxiell 5-8 2-2 12, Wallace 3-9 0-0 8, Billups 5-14 8-9 19, Hamilton 7-14 3-3 17, McDyess 5-9 0-0 10, Afflalo 0-1 0-0 0, Stuckey 2-7 0-0 4, Ratliff 2-2 2-2 6, Herrmann 0-0 1-2 1, Hayes 1-4 0-0 2, Johnson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 36-84 16-18 91.

Report: Bryant To Win His 1st MVP Award

LOS ANGELES - Kobe Bryant has won the NBA's MVP award for the first time, the Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site, citing anonymous sources familiar with the outcome of voting by media members.

The newspaper reported that Commissioner David Stern will be in Los Angeles next week to present the trophy to Bryant.

Mascot Stunt Delays Spurs-Hornets Game

NEW ORLEANS - Trouble putting out a ring of fire used in a mascot stunt caused a 19-minute delay during Game 1 of the San Antonio Spurs and New Orleans Hornets second-round playoff series Saturday night.

The delay occurred between the first and second quarter after Super Hugo, a Hornets mascot who uses a trampoline to dunk a basketball, soared through a large hoop, which had been set ablaze, before slamming the ball through the basket.

While Super Hugo celebrated the success of his stunt, workers had to douse the fire with foam from fire extinguishers for several seconds before it would go out.

Maintenance crews then tried to clean up the mess by using dry mops normally used to soak up sweat, but that ended up smearing it from end to end.

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