Pistons 99, Kings 88

By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) For the second time this month, the Detroit Pistons beat a Western Conference power with a dominating finish.

The Pistons overcame a huge deficit with two fourth-quarter runs in a 99-88 victory over Sacramento on Sunday.

``It feels great, but we aren't cutting down any nets,'' Detroit's Jon Barry said.

Detroit outscored Sacramento 14-3 to open the fourth quarter and take a 81-80 lead with 7:32 left, and closed with a 15-1 run.

The Pistons beat the three-time champion Los Angeles Lakers 111-88 at home on March 12 thanks to a 10-0 surge early in the final quarter.

Cliff Robinson scored 21 points, Corliss Williamson had 15 of his 19 points during the fourth-quarter comeback, Chauncey Billups scored 18 points and made two 3-pointers in the final minutes.

The Eastern Conference-leading Pistons have won five of seven and nine of 12 to move 1{ games ahead of New Jersey for the best record in the conference. Detroit also maintained its 3{-game lead over Indiana in the Central Division.

The Pistons trailed by 21 midway through the second quarter and by 10 after three quarters.

``We were fortunate to survive this one, but it proves that if your will is strong, you can always come back,'' Detroit coach Rick Carlisle said.

Kings star Chris Webber, who scored 22 points on 9-of-25 shooting, was booed early and often back at The Palace again.

Webber has been vilified in his home state for allegedly receiving $280,000 from booster Ed Martin, which led to his school's tarnished image and a federal trial scheduled for July on charges of obstruction of justice and lying to a grand jury.

``Outside of Detroit, nobody really cares about it,'' Webber said. ``It's a big thing here because I'm from the city and sometimes (the media) needs something to talk about. The rest of the country doesn't care about it.''

Webber didn't start or finish the game well.

He got into early foul trouble and didn't score until there was 8:24 left in the first half. In the final 4:07, Webber was 0-for-2 with two turnovers and a missed free throw.

``We made Chris take a lot of tough shots and never let him get into a rhythm,'' Robinson said.

Sacramento, which was 42-2 when leading after three quarters, was trying to extend its winning streak to a season-high seven games.

A 20-2 run over the first and second quarters gave the Kings a 40-19 lead before Webber even made a shot. Detroit cut the deficit to 57-46 at halftime, and trailed 77-67 after three quarters.

``Hopefully we learned a lesson,'' Kings coach Rick Adelman said. ``You have to play 48 minutes.''

The Kings continue their six-game road trip with games in Indiana, Washington, Boston and Philadelphia.

``I feel sorry for the rest of the teams that have to play us on this trip because we're very inspired,'' Webber said.

Peja Stojakovic made his first seven shots and scored 16 of his 21 points in the first quarter. He made just two of three shots over the final three quarters.

``Mike Curry made an unbelievable effort to deny Peja touches in the second half, and then Corliss and Jon Barry both did great jobs against him,'' Carlisle said. ^Notes:@ Detroit snapped an eight-game losing streak against the Kings with its first win against them since Feb. 23, 1998. ... Williamson and Barry, who scored eight points, beat their former team for the first time. ... Detroit's Ben Wallace had 12 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)