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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- This was all about attitude for
Lindsey Hunter. He didn't want to see the Detroit Pistons' winning streak end.
Thanks to him, it didn't.
|  | | Christian Laettner pulls down one of his five rebounds in front of Atlanta's Alan Henderson. |
Grant Hill scored 30 points and Hunter made a key defensive play
at the end as the Pistons won their fifth straight game beating the
Atlanta Hawks 93-91 Friday night.
It was an emotional win for the Pistons, who had rallied from a
12-point deficit for an eight-point triumph at Indiana the night
before.
"If we didn't win tonight, last night's game would have meant
nothing," Hunter said. "That's the type of attitude we have for
every game now."
Jim Jackson had 18 points for Atlanta. The Hawks, 1-7 on the road, hurt themselves by hitting just 13 of 22 free throws and
turning the ball over 15 times.
"We kind of shot ourselves in the foot with turnovers and free
throws," said Hawks coach Lenny Wilkens. "It was a big win for
them last night, so they were on a high. They feel pretty good
about themselves."
The Pistons took a 92-88 lead on two free throws by Hill with
1:21 remaining, but Jackson hit a 3-pointer from the left side with
3.5 seconds left to make it 92-91.
"Basically, we had good stops, except for Jackson's
3-pointer," Hill said. "I don't know how he got that shot."
Hunter, who scored 20 points, was fouled with 2.5 seconds left,
but hit just one of his two free throws.
The Hawks, after a timeout, tried to inbound the ball to Dikembe
Mutombo in the lane, but Hunter knocked it away to preserve the
victory.
"Tonight, we gutted it out defensively," Hunter said. "Fatigue was starting to set in."
The Hawks' biggest fourth-quarter lead was 77-73 on Isaiah
Rider's basket with 9:54 remaining. But Michael Curry had a pair of
three-point plays to get the Pistons quickly back in front, 79-78,
with 9:11 left and the game seesawed the rest of the way.
Hunter's jumper from the left side and a free throw by Hill gave
Detroit an 88-85 lead with 3:46 left.
Roshown McLeod, who scored seven points in the fourth quarter, missed two straight shots with just over a minute remaining. But
Jackson's 3-pointer nearly made up for that.
Six points by Mutombo, who had 16 points and 20 rebounds, helped
the Hawks overcome a seven-point halftime deficit and take a 63-61
lead with 4:55 left in the third quarter.
Both Jackson and Bimbo Coles hit 3-pointers in the final 1:16 to
send the Hawks into the fourth quarter with a 71-69 lead.
The lead had changed hands six times when Anthony Johnson put
Atlanta ahead 38-36 with a jumper from the side of the lane with
8:52 left in the second quarter.
But a 3-pointer by John Crotty 14 seconds later started a 14-4 run that gave Detroit a 50-42 lead with 2:17 left in the quarter.
Hunter had five points in the spurt, finishing it off with a
3-pointer and a jumper in the lane.
The Pistons led 52-45 at halftime.
Game notes
This was the second 20-rebound game for Mutombo this season.
He leads the NBA in both rebounds and blocked shots. ... The
Pistons activated Crotty before the game, placing Jermaine Jackson
on the injured list. Jackson has tendintis in his right knee. ...
Despite his scoring, Hill had a rare off-game on the floor, with
two turnovers in the first half. He made up for the second one,
however, to running the length of the court to block the shot by
Jason Terry. ... Mutombo drew a technical with 9:22 left in the
third quarter for a retaliatory foul on Jerry Stackhouse, who had
knocked Mutombo down under the Atlanta basket.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Atlanta Clubhouse
Detroit Clubhouse
RECAPS
Milwaukee 114
Boston 112
Charlotte 118
Washington 85
Philadelphia 106
Cleveland 83
Indiana 105
Vancouver 86
Detroit 93
Atlanta 91
Portland 91
Houston 88
San Antonio 101
Chicago 78
Denver 114
Minnesota 105
Toronto 100
Utah 87
Seattle 98
LA Clippers 93
LA Lakers 103
New Jersey 80
Sacramento 124
Golden State 95
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