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NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: CAVALIERS v PISTONS

May 24, 2007

Mike Brown

DETROIT, MICHIGAN: Game Two

Q. Can you describe your feelings right now, being in position to win both of these games and to come up short?
COACH BROWN: Tough ballgame, two tough ballgames. Down the stretch, both teams played well defensively and they came up with the win, with both of them.

Q. Talk about your view on the last play, whether there was a foul on LeBron or not.
COACH BROWN: The officials get paid a lot of money, and that's their job. If they don't see anything, they don't see anything. We're a no-excuse team. We've got to get ready for Game 3.

Q. Again, the third quarter, the ending like deja-vu, the third quarter, like deja-vu, what seems to be the problem? Who's the blame on there, the coaches, the players? Why the struggles in the third quarter?
COACH BROWN: Because it's a good team. It's a good team. They come out of the locker room and they're ready to rock and roll.

Q. Can you break down what happened with LeBron getting trapped in the middle and then kicking out to Sasha and then also what happened with him going to the basket, what didn't work for you guys?
COACH BROWN: He got trapped, he passed the ball to Sasha who was open, Sasha jumped in the air, let the ball go, the ball bounced and the referee called travel. Last play he drove to the hole, he missed the shot, I think Larry missed the rebound and then Andy missed the tip-in and they won the game.

Q. I guess I was more asking about the decision making, what you thought of what your guys did out on the floor.
COACH BROWN: Those particular plays? The right play, LeBron drove it hard, tried to get to the rim, shot the ball. That was the right play.
And the other time he drove it, he got triple-teamed and he kicked it to Sasha, Sasha was wide open. That was the right play, also.

Q. You used Daniel Gibson a lot tonight, were you pleased with those minutes you got from him?
COACH BROWN: Yeah, he was solid coming off the bench. I thought both defensively and offensively he was solid for us. Not only that, he stuck his nose in there, he got some big rebounds for us, came up with some terrific loose balls, and he gave us some energy.

Q. What did you tell your team after tonight's game, and what did you tell LeBron if he's not going to get the calls when it looks like he gets fouled? Where does he go? What does he do?
COACH BROWN: I haven't told LeBron anything. We just have got to keep attacking. We're a no-excuse team. I told the guys that we've got to get ready for Game 3. We didn't play good enough, I guess, today to get a win.

Q. I'm not asking you to make excuses, but from where you were standing can you describe what you saw on that final possession when LeBron was going up against Rip?
COACH BROWN: LeBron drove the ball, he shot it, he missed it. I think Larry got the rebound. He shot it, he missed it. Andy tipped it, they came up with the rebound and we fouled them.

Q. Why did you get so upset afterwards?
COACH BROWN: Just emotions. Tough game.

End of FastScripts
BILLUPS: Well, we had a couple things in mind. Didn't end up having to use them because we had it going in the fourth quarter. A couple guys had it going, so we really didn't have to use it. We just kind of got away from it.

Second half started to get a little more aggressive, not waiting for the plays to happen, just kind of bringing it on myself, getting a little more energy, and I was able to turn the tide a little bit personally, and as a team we started to step it up and play a little better, a little faster, a little more aggressive.

Q. This is the second game in a row neither team has broken 80 points. You're obviously playing very hard and very talented, what do you attribute the low scoring to?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: Well, I would just speak for our team, I think we're playing great defensively and limiting those guys and trying to do what we have to do. Offensively we haven't played good in either game. In either game we haven't played good. You know, we look to try to turn that around, but try to keep our defense the same.
One thing about our team is we can win both ways. We can win in the 80s, we can win in the 105 to 110 range. That's just how versatile we are. We're used to games like this where our defense has to carry us. We've done it for years.

Q. Coming into tonight's game everybody knew LeBron was going to step his game up a notch from Game 1, how do you guys feel you handled his aggressiveness? Obviously he took more shots.
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: I thought we did good. We knew he was going to be more aggressive attacking the basket and we did that. We had guys helping and guys in position to be there and help. He still did a good job. He still had 19 points, had a chance to go up one late in the game, and Rip I thought made a great defensive play on him. I thought our defense was great.

Q. Again, after kind of a flat last half of the second quarter, you guys came out in the third quarter and just were gangbusters and turned the game around. What's happening that, A, you're going flat, and B, when you're coming out after halftime?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: Well, our offense has just not been very good, and of course when you're at home, when your offense is good, it's a lot of energy in the building, you know, you can kind of feed off of that. Our offense hasn't been good, so we have not given our fans a lot to cheer about in these two games with the exception of our defense. So at halftime we come in down 12, mad, angry, but knowing what the problem is, and we made a couple adjustments, and like I said, stepped it up and was a little more aggressive. We was able to get back into the game.

Q. Two things: One, they're not doing anything schematic to throw you guys off with their defense. Is there anything you're not used to seeing?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: No, they're definitely doing some different things defensively. I mean, first and foremost, they are trapping on pick and rolls with me. They pretty much said, we're going to take him out of it, take him away from it. Second, when Rip is coming down they're soft trapping him, as well.
Yeah, I think they're doing some really good things to us defensively, and for us to try to make some adjustments to.

Q. The other thing is, just comment on Rasheed. You've seen him play where he's taken over games before, but that stretch in the fourth quarter, that was pretty special.
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: Sheed, man, he just never ceases to amaze me. When he's focused and he's trying to take a game over, there's nobody that can stop him. He scores in so many different ways, he's a great defender, he doesn't get a lot of press for the way that he defends guys, and his help defense, his man defense. He's a well-rounded player. He lives for moments like that. He lives for the playoffs and tight-game situations as a few of us on the team do.

Q. What is it about him emotionally, too, that sparks you guys? How does that work? What does he say to you guys?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: Well, it's not nothing that he really says, it's how the game is going, how the refs are calling it. When he feels like he's getting a tough whistle, he's more inspired and he's more motivated. We don't like to see him get them call bad calls on him, but when they do do that it works in our advantage because when he feels like everybody is against him, he's ready to rock and roll. That's what you seen tonight.

Q. Just to follow up, at the end of the game, how much did you know exactly what the Cavs were trying to do with LeBron?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: They can't surprise us really at the end of games. They go to LeBron. I can't blame them. He's an unbelievable player. We've just got to stay locked in. Like I said, at the end of Game 1, we weren't as locked in as we should have been, giving Donyell an open look. Tonight, same situation, unbelievable, same situation; Rip plays great defense on him, makes him take a tough shot, he misses it. Ball's in the air, we're trying to rebound and we finally get the rebound and secure the game.

Q. And the same situation with you, same situation with him kicking out to Sasha?
CHAUNCEY BILLUPS: Yeah, that was a little bit earlier. It wasn't like the second situation, but I kind of knew once he got in there, and Rasheed is just so long that Sasha was in the corner, so I was kind of cheating to him, and he was going to have to make a tough, tough shot.

End of FastScripts

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