Gordon’s huge 2nd half helps Pistons snap Miami’s 9-game winning streak

Gordon carries Pistons past Heat, 106-99

MIAMI — Ben Gordon scored 26 of his 39 points in the second half, Tayshaun Prince added 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds, and the Detroit Pistons beat Miami 106-99 on Friday night, snapping a nine-game Heat winning streak that had been the NBA’s longest current run.

Charlie Villanueva scored 11 and Will Bynum had 10 for the Pistons, who won their third straight despite playing without guards Rodney Stuckey (ribs) and Richard Hamilton (ankle).

Dwyane Wade finished with 19 points and nine assists for Miami, which saw its hopes of finishing fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff chase take a huge hit. Udonis Haslem finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Heat.

Including playoffs, Gordon now has 10 games of 25 points or more against Miami, more than any other team.

Down the stretch, the Heat simply didn’t have an answer for him.

Gordon hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final 3½ minutes, both giving Detroit seven-point leads, the last a 100-93 cushion with 2:11 left. Dorell Wright answered both with 3s of his own for Miami — which lost for just the fourth time in its last 19 games — but Gordon sealed it with a pullup 14-footer with 44 seconds left.

He was the player of the game for Detroit — and probably a hero to the Milwaukee Bucks, too, because Miami’s loss was gigantic for them.

The Bucks defeated Philadelphia and that, combined with the Heat loss, gives Milwaukee command of the race for the No. 5 spot in the East. Milwaukee (45-34) is a full game ahead of the Heat (44-35) — and, because the Bucks hold the tiebreaker over Miami, they would have to lose two of their final three games for the Heat to have any chance of getting the fifth seed.

Miami has pulled off a number of late rallies in recent weeks, and when Haslem connected with 7:56 left to cap a 19-6 run to put the Heat up 86-85, it seemed like this would be another.

Detroit wasn’t having it, holding Miami to just two more field goals in the next five minutes, then hanging on at the end.

Wright finished with 15 for Miami, which got 14 from Jermaine O’Neal on 7-for-10 shooting. The Heat shot 56 percent, but gave Detroit 23 points off 16 turnovers.

Detroit led most of the way, building a 53-48 edge by halftime, and if it wasn’t for some quick thinking by Haslem, the Heat could have been in a bit of a deeper hole at the break.

Haslem’s foul on Ben Wallace with 16 seconds left took away what would have been an easy layup. Wallace — a 41 percent free throw shooter this season coming into Friday, yet having gone a sizzling-for-him 6 for 6 in his last two games — airballed the first try, then missed the second almost as badly.

Not surprisingly, Wallace was an afterthought in the Detroit offensive plan the rest of the way.

It was all Gordon in the third, when he got up nearly as many shots (nine) in the period as Miami managed (13).

Gordon scored 14 in the quarter, including a trio of 3-pointers, and the Pistons went up by as many as 12 after Bynum had a three-point play, then a steal and layup in a span of 14 seconds.

Miami finished the quarter on a 9-2 spurt, getting within 81-76 entering the fourth.

NOTES: Appearing on the Heat TV broadcast during the third quarter, Heat president Pat Riley said he thinks there have been times where Michael Beasley has “been judged too harshly.” Riley also said he’s asked Beasley to lighten the expectations he places upon himself. … Nearing the end of a miserable season, Pistons coach John Kuester said the 35-year-old Wallace’s decision to play the final games shows “what it is to be a professional. I think that’s huge for us and that speaks volumes about what Ben Wallace is all about.” … Haslem has 10 or more rebounds in each of his last five games, tying a career high.