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Ellis scores 27 as Warriors hold off Pistons

Nov 16, 2010 - 8:47 AM Oakland, CA (Sports Network) - Monta Ellis scored 27 points and Stephen Curry added 21, as Golden State saw its 32-point lead dwindle as low as two in the fourth quarter before holding off Detroit, 101-97.

Dorell Wright donated 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while Reggie Williams added 14 points for the Warriors, who snapped a two-game skid and improved to 5-0 at home this season.

Charlie Villanueva led six Pistons in double figures with 18 points and eight rebounds, Tayshaun Prince added 15 points, Austin Daye 14 and Richard Hamilton 13 for the Pistons, who saw their two-game winning streak come to an end.

The Warriors scored 65 points in the first half then managed just 36 the rest of the way, shooting 21 percent in the fourth quarter, but holding on to stay perfect at ORACLE Arena.

Detroit drew as close as 17 points in the third quarter at 85-68 on a Gordon high-arching three, but finished the period in an 87-69 hole. A 9-2 stretch to begin the four quarter trimmed what was once a 32-point deficit to 11 at 89-78 thanks to a Villanueva layup.

Trailing 98-86, Detroit scored the next eight to cut the deficit to four points. Villanueva's three with 2:47 left trimmed the margin to six and Ben Gordon's layup on the next possession made it even closer. The Pistons had even more chances down the stretch, but rookie Greg Monroe missed a pair of free throws with 1:39 to play and Villanueva misfired on a trey from the top of the circle about 20 seconds later.

Finally, the Pistons capitalized. Tracy McGrady followed up his own miss in the lane by corralling the rebound and scoring off the glass while being fouled. He missed the free throw, but after a wild sequence and a jump ball, Detroit got the basketball back after Ellis missed a runner off the glass as the shot clock expired.

Gordon was stripped on the other end, and Ellis was fouled with 5.7 seconds to play. Ellis made the first, but missed the second, leaving the door open for the Pistons. The Warriors fouled Villanueva, who made the second of two attempts. Rodney Carney was nearly tackled with 2.7 ticks to play and he calmly sank both to put the game away.

"Well we're in the entertainment business, so we are going to make sure our fans get their moneys worth, but it puts the coaches, ownership and the general manager in the hospital," joked Warriors head coach Keith Smart. "When you are playing with a big lead it's hard to maintain composure to keep things solid."

The teams played close to the vest for most of the first quarter until Golden State rattled off 14 straight points to close the period. Ellis scored half of them, capped by two free throws with 34.7 ticks left, and Curry finished off the quarter with a jumper that went through the net with 1.4 seconds remaining.

The Warriors then rattled off the first eight points of the second period. Curry made two free throws for a 42-21 game as Detroit went over 6 1/2 game minutes without a point. McGrady's jumper for a 45-24 game was the Pistons' first field goal in just over 7 1/2 minutes as well. Carney's alley-oop slam opened a 54-29 margin, and the edge reached 32 points at 65-33 on Curry's three with just over two minutes left. Detroit rallied with nine straight to close the half at a more respectable margin, 65-42.

"Coming back from 32 is hard. It's tough, but it's part of the game," Gordon said.

Game Notes

Dan Gadzuric finished with just one point but also 11 rebounds for the Warriors...Golden State shot 42.4 percent from the floor...Rodney Stuckey had 11 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Gordon posted 14 points and McGrady added six and five rebounds in defeat...Andris Biedrins chipped in with nine points, eight rebounds and three assists for Golden State.