SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The second-round series between Sacramento and Minnesota is becoming as much about bad tempers as it is great basketball.
Chris Webber guaranteed a Game 7, and the Sacramento star got all kinds of help in making it happen, even after teammate Anthony Peeler's ejection for throwing elbows at league MVP Kevin Garnett.
Mike Bibby had 16 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and three steals despite foul trouble as the Kings staved off elimination, beating the Timberwolves 104-87 in Game 6 Sunday. Game 7 is Wednesday in Minneapolis.
"Right now is the time we all dreamed about: Game 7," Webber said. "We're ready. ... I'm very confident, but no more predictions."
Peeler was ejected with 13.5 seconds left in the third quarter after throwing an elbow at Garnett. Peeler, who claimed Garnett tried to hit him in the throat, elbowed Garnett on the previous possession, then Garnett stuck his elbow into Peeler's chest when the Kings came down on offense.
Garnett also received a technical and went to the bench. Fans started throwing glow sticks used for pregame festivities onto the court. Vlade Divac lightly shoved a Minnesota assistant coach during the scuffle.
Also, the league fined Sacramento's Brad Miller $10,000 for an obscene gesture in Friday's Game 5 in Minnesota.
PISTONS 81, NETS 75: Nothing deterred Detroit - not three straight losses, a three-overtime heartbreak or an early double-digit deficit - from forcing Game 7 on the road.
Richard Hamilton pump-faked Jason Kidd off his feet and drilled a clutch 18-footer with 15.5 seconds remaining, capping a 24-point performance that kept Detroit's season alive.
"We knew what kind of game this was going to be, what kind of environment this was going to be," Pistons guard Chauncey Billups said. "We knew it was tonight or it's over."
New Jersey had three chances to tie it when trailing 72-70, but Kidd threw a bad pass, the Nets had a 24-second violation and Kenyon Martin missed the iron on an inside shot with 1:45 left.
PACERS: Guard Fred Jones expects to play in Tuesday's Game 6 at Miami after missing Game 5 with an injured left shoulder.
Lakers oust champs
Kobe Bryant scored 12 of his 26 in the fourth quarter and Shaquille O'Neal had 17 points, 19 rebounds and five blocked shots to lead the host Lakers past the Spurs 88-76 late Saturday, eliminating the defending champions.
Los Angeles took the series in six games after falling behind 0-2. Exactly a year earlier, the Spurs celebrated a conference semifinal triumph on the same court to end the Lakers' quest for a fourth straight title.
"It was a big series for us, playing the defending champs," Bryant said. "Last year they knocked us out and we had an opportunity to return the favor."
Tony Parker, so outstanding in the first two games, shot 4-of-18 in scoring nine points and had only three assists in the finale.
The Lakers became the eighth team to win a best-of-seven series after losing the first two. The last team to accomplish such a feat was Houston, which did it in both the 1994 and 1995 conference semifinals against Phoenix en route to championships.
