O'Neal Shrugs of Injury to Lead Pacers Past Pistons
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Indiana Pacers shook off an early injury to star forward Jermaine O'Neal to trounce the Detroit Pistons 83-68 in Game Four of the Eastern Conference finals in Auburn Hills, Michigan on Friday.

The Pacers' victory evened up the best-of-seven series at 2-2 and wrestled back home-court advantage ahead of Game Five in Indianapolis on Sunday. O'Neal, among the leading vote-getters for league MVP this season, crashed to the floor with what was diagnosed as a sprained left knee late in the first quarter.
He left the court briefly before returning with his knee in a protective sleeve to play a team-high 39 minutes, notching 12 points while pulling down 13 rebounds.

He was one of four Pacers in double figures, with Ron Artest leading the way with 20 points to go with his 10 boards.

Austin Croshere, making his first start in over two years, also made a major contribution.

He hardly looked rusty, racking up 14 points, including three three-pointers, two of them coming just before and after the halftime break.

Veteran Reggie Miller added 15 points.

Richard Hamilton again paced the Pistons with 22 points, with Chauncey Billups adding 21.

Ben Wallace had a single point but made his presence felt with a whopping 19 rebounds.

Despite the injury to O'Neal, Indiana nursed a comfortable 29-17 lead after a quarter.

The Pistons, following a tongue-lashing by coach Larry Brown, cut the margin to five in the second.

O'Neal returned and the Pacers responded, going up 37-26.

Croshere hit from long range just before the buzzer to give Indiana a 49-39 advantage after two quarters.

Artest, who had 14 points at the break, told a sideline reporter: "The whole team is moving the ball."

Croshere hit another three-pointer just after the half to put Indiana 13 ahead and the Pacers built on that margin, going up 70-50 after three quarters.

Detroit closed the gap to 11 with six and a half minutes remaining, but never looked like winning.

The winner of the series will face either the Los Angeles Lakers or the Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA finals.

The Lakers lead the Western Conference finals 3-1 with Game Five in Minneapolis on Saturday.

Playoff Joys
Game 4, Eastern Conference Finals
May 28, 2004 at The Palace of Auburn Hills

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STORYLINE
With his team up against the wall, Rick Carlisle decided to push a few buttons. He replaced Jeff Foster in the starting lineup with Austin Croshere. He employed a zone defense with unprecedented frequency. And, all of a sudden, it's the Detroit Pistons who are at a disadvantage. In his first start of the year, Croshere scored 14 points and made three huge 3-pointers in a critical run. And Ron Artest snapped out of his funk with 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Pacers routed Detroit 83-68 in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Friday night in The Palace of Auburn Hills.
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WHAT IT MEANS
Though the series is tied 2-2, the Pacers regained homecourt advantage, not to mention needed confidence. Detroit, which had won 17 of its last 19 home games, faced the prospect of needing at least one more win in Conseco Fieldhouse to take the series.
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UP NEXT
The teams head back to Indianapolis for Game 5 on Sunday at 7 p.m. in Conseco Fieldhouse.
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TURNING POINT
With Croshere's perimeter threat creating plenty of space for the offense to operate, the Pacers controlled most of the first half but Detroit clawed back, cutting it to 44-39 late in the second quarter. After Jermaine O'Neal made two free throws, Croshere closed the half with a 3-pointer to push the Pacers to a 10-point lead at the break. He then opened the second half with another trey, adding yet another to get the Pacers well on their way to a 25-7 run that opened a 69-46 lead late in the third period. The Pistons got no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
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GAME FLOW
Opening the game with their best overall quarter of the series, the Pacers jumped on Detroit early, hitting 11 of 19 shots and building a 29-17 lead at the end of the first period. Detroit made a couple of brief pushes in the second period, closing to 29-24 early and 44-39 late, but the Pacers answered both times. The Pacers shot 48.6 percent in the half and outrebounded the Pistons 22-18. Artest was superb, scoring 14 points with seven rebounds in the half.
After Croshere fueled the 25-7 run with a trio of 3-pointers, the Pacers hit a dry spell -- not coincidentally while Croshere was on the bench -- missing 10 of 11 shots as Detroit went on a 15-3 run. Chauncey Billups scored the final nine in a row on a pair of 3-pointers and a three-point play, cutting the lead to 72-61 with 6:26 remaining and igniting the crowd of 22,076. But Carlisle took a timeout, put Croshere back in the game and all was right with the Pacers' world. Artest took over, offensively, scoring six in a row for the Pacers before Reggie Miller iced it with a 3-pointer that made it 81-65 with 2:03 remaining.


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INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
The Pacers had series highs of .457 shooting, 83 points and 15 assists. Artest's 20 points led the scoring and he added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in a solid all-around game. Miller scored 15, hitting 6 of 7 shots. Croshere was 5 of 8 from the field, including 3 of 4 from the arc, in scoring 14 points -- his highest output in more than two months. O'Neal fought through an early knee sprain to scored 12 points, pull 13 rebounds and block four shots.
Detroit's guards were productive if not efficient, but received little help. Richard Hamilton scored 22, but needed 24 shots. Chauncey Billups scored 21 on 5 of 14 shooting. Rasheed Wallace scored 10 but was 5 of 17 from the floor. Ben Wallace pulled 19 rebounds but scored just one point. Detroit's frontcourt starters combined for just 11 points on 5 of 27 shooting. The Pistons shot .308 overall but outrebounded the Pacers 49-41, with 19 coming at the offensive end.

NOTEWORTHY
O'Neal went down hard with 2:33 left in the first quarter when his left knee bent backward when he landed awkwardly after grabbing a rebound. He remained in the game briefly but headed to the locker room for examination with 1:34 left in the period. He returned early in the second quarter and finished the game.
Jamaal Tinsley, playing with a sore left hamstring, left the game midway through the third period after aggravating his injury in pursuit of a loose ball. He did not return.
With Tinsley injured, Kenny Anderson played for the first time in the series but lasted just three minutes.
O'Neal wrote "Remember Why" and the No. 31 on the back of his sneaker before the game, a tribute to his commitment to get Miller a championship ring before he retires.
(Taken from the Pacers OFFICAL site: www.pacers.com