Auburn Hills, MI – Ben Gordon made seven straight three- pointers in the second quarter and the Pistons concluded their season with a 108-86 rout of playoff-bound Philadelphia.
The 76ers could have clinched the Eastern Conference's seventh seed with a win and a Knicks loss to Charlotte, but rested most of their regulars and fell to the eighth spot. They will face the top-seeded Bulls when the playoffs begin on Saturday.
Spencer Hawes scored 16 to pace Philadelphia, which ended the regular season with a 35-31 record.
"After the slide we went on, to be able to right our ship, we're glad with where we ended up and to have an opportunity to go back to the playoffs, even though it is as the eighth seed," said Hawes.
Gordon finished with a game-high 26 points and Rodney Stuckey added 13 for the Pistons, who concluded their season with a 25-41 mark. They haven't made the playoffs since 2008-09.
Ben Wallace, playing perhaps his final game in the NBA, had seven points and a season-high 12 rebounds for Detroit.
"Do I think it's time for me to retire? Yea," said Wallace. "But people are asking me to come back. Obviously they see something in me that I don't see in myself right now."
Detroit led 26-15 after the first but truly took control in the second behind Gordon's flawless shooting. His seventh trey of the quarter, a catch-and-shoot 25-footer, came before the midway point and had Detroit up 52-28.
The Pistons tied an NBA record for most made threes in a quarter by sinking 11 in the second. Gordon's seven three-balls in the period is a Pistons team record.
The 76ers finally set about stopping Gordon, consistently sending double teams his way, and Charlie Villanueva proved the benefactor. The forward made three treys -- all assisted by Gordon -- before the end of the quarter, helping Detroit to a 65-43 lead at the break.
The 76ers failed to cut into their deficit in the second half and the Pistons matched their largest lead -- 28 points -- in the fourth quarter.
Game Notes
The 76ers are in the playoffs for the second straight season and the fourth time in five years...They rested starters Andre Iguodala, Elton Brand and Jrue Holiday and key reserves Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams...Philadelphia won the season-series, 3-1...Wallace mentioned during the season that he would retire after the 2011-12 campaign. He is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year, a four-time All-Star and won a title with the Pistons in 2004.
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