TORONTO -- Toronto Raptors forward Jerome Williams called the booing of the Canadian national anthem by Detroit Pistons fans "sad."

Before Sunday's Game 1 of the first-round playoff series, the capacity crowd at the Palace of Auburn Hills booed "O Canada" from beginning to end.

"That was something I wouldn't have expected from a city like Detroit. It was disheartening," Williams, a former Piston, said after Monday's practice. "It was a total lack of respect, and I was just disappointed we didn't get a win after."

The Pistons beat the Raptors, a team comprised solely of Americans, 85-63. Game 2 is Wednesday night at Auburn Hills.

Danielle Bollinger sang the Canadian anthem Sunday. Bruce Hornsby performed "The Star-Spangled Banner."

The display came on the day funerals began for the four Canadian soldiers killed when an American F-16 mistakenly bombed Canadian troops in Afghanistan.

Angry sports fans lit up local radio call-in shows, voicing their displeasure.

The timing wasn't lost on Antonio Davis of the Raptors.

"In dealing with what everybody's been through, it's hard to understand why they would do something like that," Davis said. "It was stupidity on their part, so we'll let them deal with it."

Added Raptors forward Keon Clark: "I'm American, but I think that was kind of childish. You should never disrespect anybody's national song. But that's people for you, that's the kind of world we live in nowadays."

The worst way Raptors fans could respond, Davis warned, is by booing the U.S. anthem when Detroit comes to the Air Canada Centre for Game 3 on Saturday.

"I don't expect our fans to boo anybody's national anthem, we're here to show we have a little bit more class than that, and we're here to enjoy a game of basketball," Davis said. "It should never overstep that, and it's unfortunate that they did it, but hopefully we'll show a little more class and deal with it that way."

Some Raptors, however, said the team was the intended target of the crowd's wrath.

"I don't think they were booing the anthem, I think they were booing us," guard Chris Childs said.

"I think they were more booing the Raptors than they were booing Canada," added Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens. "The mob is easily led."