Taking a toll

Big Ben answers the bell to keep top-seeded Pistons alive

Ding-dong.

The bell was tolling for the Pistons in Game 6 Friday night.

Ding-dong.

Down 3-2 to the Magic, they faced a do-or-die situation before a raucous Orlando crowd.

Ding-dong.

They were about to become just the third No. 1 seed in NBA history to lose to a No. 8 seed.

Fortunately, Big Ben came to the rescue. And now the clock might be ready to strike midnight on the Cinderella Magic.

Thanks in large part to Ben Wallace’s tone-setting defense -- along with a career-high-tying 20 points, 17 rebounds, four steals and five blocks -- the Pistons evened their playoff series at 3-all on Friday.

53-20 Portland's run to close the first half in Friday night's layup drill against Dallas. The Blazers trailed 18-11 before taking the lead by the end of the first quarter and laying a 37-14 whipping on the Mavs in the second. "My wife beat me four times and I still married her." -- Shaquille O'Neal of the Lakers, on the importance of San Antonio's 4-0 series sweep of Los Angeles during the regular season. Are the Hornets really foolish enough to let a coach like Paul Silas get away?

Oh, sure, other players chimed in for Detroit, notably Chauncey Billups (40 points) and Richard Hamilton (22).

But, as usual, Big Ben banged the gong.

From an early first-quarter possession, when he calmly swished a jumper with the shot clock ticking down, to the end of the fourth, when he dug out a loose ball to squelch Orlando’s final hopes, Wallace just kept making key plays.

He soared high to snare rebounds.

He rotated out to get a hand in the face of shooters.

He even blocked a Tracy McGrady jump shot.

Billups’ scoring might have been the story for the offensively challenged Pistons, but it was the defense that won the game. With Wallace setting the tone, Detroit managed to hold Orlando’s high-octane offense to just 39.5 percent shooting. McGrady was held to 11-of-28 from the floor.

Speaking of T-Mac, he’s been getting an awful lot of hype for his strong performance in this series. But over the course of the six games, one could make a compelling case that Big Ben has been just as, well, big.

Despite a sore knee, Wallace has averaged 18.9 rebounds, 11.8 points, 3.3 steals and 3.0 blocks this postseason -- all improvements over his regular-season numbers. During his past four games, he has had 22, 24, 21 and 17 rebounds.

And with his team’s season on the line Friday night, he came up with a career effort.

In fact, the only blemish came late in the game when Magic coach Doc Rivers went to the Hack-a-Ben strategy. Wallace, as is his custom, clanked a bunch of free throws to nearly help the Magic get back in the game.

Fortunately for Detroit, he went down to the other end and shut down the lane so Orlando couldn’t capitalize.

All this is nothing new for Wallace, of course. He’s been doing it for two seasons, which is why he recently won his second straight Defensive Player of the Year award. He always plays hard, flying around in the paint and inhaling rebounds like a Hoover vacuum.

But it’s still amazing to see him do it in the playoffs, with everything on the line. What a remarkable athlete. What a hard worker.

Big Ben isn’t afraid to punch the clock. As a result, his Pistons can avoid going down in history as ding dongs.

	Layne Murdoch/NBAE/Getty Images Stud: Allen Iverson, G, 76ers The Answer went off for another huge night, excusing the Hornets from the playoffs with a 45-point effort that included a ridiculous bank shot at the end to cement the win.		AP Dud: Dirk Nowitzki, F, Mavs Nowitzki scored a meager four points on 2-of-11 shooting and grabbed zero rebounds as the Mavs moved a step closer to the greatest collapse in playoff history.
	AP Stud: Chauncey Billups, G, Pistons Not only he did he hit his first five 3-pointers and make seven on the game, but he was nailing them off the dribble. Billups' 40 points were a career high as Detroit fought off elimination.		AP Dud: Pat Garrity, F, Magic How much longer is Doc Rivers going to stick with his wounded forward? Garrity played 30 minutes Friday, but was abused on defense and made just 2-of-9 shots from the field as he battled a sore groin.

The good news for the Mavs is that Steve Nash got untracked a bit in Game 6. Assuming Dirk Nowitzki bounces back, they should be able to score enough in Sunday’s Game 7. But can they find a way to keep the Blazers off the boards? Despite injuries to Baron Davis and Jamal Mashburn, New Orleans made it a competitive series against the Sixers. If that doesn’t convince management that coach Paul Silas is worth a contract extension, they’re not paying attention. Leave it to John Stockton to bow out quietly and with dignity. From his old-school style of play to those tiny shorts, he truly was a throwback. If only more players cared so much about the game and so little about the other stuff.

Marty Burns covers pro basketball for SI.com. Click here to send Marty a question or comment.

 

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