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AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Detroit's rout ended New Jersey's reign in the Eastern Conference.
Chauncey Billups scored 22, Richard Hamilton had 21 and Ben Wallace added 18 to lead the Pistons past the Nets 90-69 Thursday night in Game 7 of their East semifinal.
Detroit took the lead for good in the middle of the first quarter and turned the game into a blowout early in the third by using its dominant defense to hold the Nets to just two points in the first six-plus minutes while opening a 24-point lead.
The Pistons advanced to the conference final for the second straight year by knocking off the team that swept them last season.
"Tonight everybody came together and we fought," Hamilton said. "There's a lot of things we want to accomplish, and we're still one step away."
Detroit's victory sets up an intriguing matchup with the Pacers, who are coached by Rick Carlisle - fired by the Pistons last summer after winning 100 regular-season games, two division titles and three playoff series in two seasons.
Larry Brown was hired to replace Carlisle, and the Hall of Fame coach improved to 5-3 in Game 7s - including a 4-0 mark in such games at home.
Two of New Jersey's stars - Richard Jefferson and Kenyon Martin - had solid games, and Jason Kidd had another lackluster one.
Kidd was held scoreless, missing all eight of his shots, and had five assists. His low in the playoffs in his three seasons with the Nets was a five-point performance in Game 3 against Detroit.
Since Kidd was traded to New Jersey three years ago, the Nets advanced to the NBA title series twice - without experiencing a Game 7. In fact, New Jersey played in its first Game 7 as an NBA franchise on Thursday night, and it was one to forget.
With their raucous crowd on its feet for much of the game, the Pistons became the 73rd team out of 88 to win a Game 7 at home.
LAKERS-WOLVES: Though Minnesota has homecourt advantage in the Western Conference final, it's hard to consider the team a favorite against well-rested, more experienced and supremely confident Los Angeles.
"We understand that people aren't giving us a chance, but that's what we like," Minnesota's Sam Cassell said. "People didn't give us a chance to get the No. 1 seed in the West either."
There has been no time for the Timberwolves to revel in their first successful playoff run. Hours after defeating Sacramento to complete a draining, seven-game semifinal series, the Wolves began preparing for tonight's Game 1.
The Lakers have been off since Saturday so they ought to open this series with plenty of energy. The Wolves could be worn out, especially with Cassell, their point guard, hobbled by a bad back and hip.
"They put their all into the (Sacramento) series, and now they've got to get going again," Los Angeles forward Devean George said. "We're going to go in there with rested legs and try to take advantage of it."
The Timberwolves will undoubtedly play plenty of zone defense, daring the Lakers to beat them from outside.
"Shaq will be the thrust and focus of our offense," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of center Shaquille O'Neal.
After their record seventh straight first-round elimination, the Wolves completely overhauled their roster last summer, acquiring Cassell and Latrell Sprewell in trades and signing free agents Michael Olowokandi, Mark Madsen and Fred Hoiberg.
The Lakers retooled, too, after their streak of three straight NBA titles ended with a second-round loss to eventual champion San Antonio. Los Angeles said goodbye to Madsen and Robert Horry and signed free agents Karl Malone and Gary Payton to make a run at another ring.
WARRIORS: Rod Higgins was elevated from scout to general manager to replace Garry St. Jean, who was given a new role in a shakeup that followed the firing of coach Eric Musselman.
USBL: St. Louis coach Floyd Irons, who pulled his team off the floor in a May 8 game at Iowa, was reinstated after sitting out two games under suspension.