Pistons

Celtics@Pistons 7 p.m. [ESPN] Boston is on a roll again, but Detroit has been struggling of late, having lost eight of its past 12. That raises questions about the integration of Allen Iverson (left) with the Pistons.

Lawmakers oppose United stadium soccer A Prince George's County Council committee recommended Tuesday that the county oppose legislation that would launch planning for a new stadium for D.C. United. In a 5-0 vote, with two abstentions, the council's General Assembly committee recommended withholding support for a bill that would authorize the Maryland Stadium Authority to study the site and financing methods for the project, slated to cost $180 million to $195 million. Though all nine council members also are members of the committee, Council Chairman Marilynn Bland said that the action does not reflect the council's final position on the legislation.

Arenas back, but his winning try blocked nba Gilbert Arenas nearly had a heroic finish to his first game in almost a year. Instead, it was Kwame Brown - of all people - who blocked Arenas' shot in the final seconds to help preserve the Detroit Pistons' 98-96 victory over the host Washington Wizards. With 4.5 seconds remaining Saturday night and the Wizards trailing by two, Arenas chased down the rebound of his missed free throw. He whirled to put up a potential game-winning three-pointer, but Brown, who was a flop with the Wizards, got a hand on the shot.

Moves Baseball ATHLETICS -- Designated OF Milton Bradley for assignment. Purchased contract of IF Kevin Melillo from Triple-A Sacramento. Activated P Rich Harden from 15-day DL. Optioned P Shane Komine to Sacramento. DODGERS -- Signed C Ben Davis and P Chris Fussell and assigned them to Triple-A Las Vegas. Basketball BUCKS -- Exercised contract options of C Andrew Bogut and F Charlie Villanueva. PISTONS -- Announced resignation of director of player personnel Scott Perry. SUPERSONICS -- Fired director of basketball operations Dave Pendergraft and director of college scouting Steve Rosenberry.

NBA Pistons @Celtics 7 p.m. [ESPN] First-place Boston (Atlantic Division) vs. first-place Detroit (Central) is a possible NBA Eastern Conference finals preview. It's not even Christmas yet, but the 20-2 Celtics are on a record-setting pace and undefeated at home. The Pistons (17-7) have been hot, winning nine of their past 11 and playing superior defense.

NEW YORK -- To understand how stressful life had been for Detroit Pistons forward Grant Hill, all you had to do was look in his eyes and listen to his words as he described a life under former coach Doug Collins that sounded unbearable."

Pacers: Indiana's Chris Mullin, the league leader in free-throw accuracy, extended his streak of successful attempts to 32 by making his only shot from the line during Friday night's 98-90 victory over Detroit.Lakers: Kobe Bryant's four-game stretch of scoring nearly a point a minute ended when he needed 31 minutes to score 19 points during the Lakers' 98-96 win over Atlanta. He had scored 109 points in 110 minutes in his previous four games.Knicks: The Knicks snapped a six-game road losing streak, their longest in a decade, and handed Cleveland a 104-77 loss.

It's not the way the NBA would have liked to have made front-page news, the incident last week when former Golden State Warriors guard Latrell Sprewell choked, threatened and allegedly punched coach P. J. Carlesimo. And the league's get-tough policy of suspending Sprewell for a year has drawn near universal praise.But was the league's action based more on a policy of non-tolerance, or to escape the embarrassment of having Sprewell back in uniform by Christmas?You see, less than 24 hours after Sprewell was suspended for 10 games for grabbing Carlesimo by the neck, teams were calling the Warriors, attempting to get the three-time All-Star guard at a bargain-basement price.

NBA All-Star Grant Hill, one of the hottest properties in sports endorsements, has severed ties with Advantage International, the giant sports marketing firm that counted him among its marquee clients.The Detroit Pistons forward notified some of his major endorsers last week that his marketing would be handled by his father, Calvin Hill, according to several sources familiar with the relationship, all of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity.Advantage spokesman Gabe Harris declined to comment, as did officials in Grant Hill's business office in Washington and his attorney, Lon Babby.

LANDOVER -- As the Washington Bullets walked off the court at halftime last night, a promotion flashed on the USAir Arena scoreboard that a certain fast-foot chain would provide free burgers if the Bullets reached 120 points.Given the Bullets had just 30 points when the message flashed, the burgers appeared safe for another day.Yes, the Bullets could manage just 30 points at the half. Which was why there were few fans in attendance at the end of last night's 92-79 loss to the Detroit Pistons, and many of those few were booing mightily.

Spurs@Trail Blazers 10:30 p.m. [ESPN] Steve Blake, left, averaging 6.4 points and 3.4 assists for Portland, is one of three former Terps active in the NBA. The others? The Pistons' Chris Wilcox and Hawks' Joe Smith.

Daly, who coached U.S., Pistons, is dead nba Chuck Daly, who coached the Dream Team to the Olympic gold medal in 1992 after winning back-to-back NBA championships with the Detroit Pistons, died Saturday morning in Jupiter, Fla., with his family by his side. He was 78. The Pistons announced in March that the Hall of Fame coach was being treated for pancreatic cancer. Daly was renowned for creating harmony out of diverse personalities at all levels of the game, whether they were Ivy Leaguers at Pennsylvania, Dream Teamers Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley, or Pistons as dissimilar as Dennis Rodman and Joe Dumars.

Arenas back, but his winning try blocked nba Gilbert Arenas nearly had a heroic finish to his first game in almost a year. Instead, it was Kwame Brown - of all people - who blocked Arenas' shot in the final seconds to help preserve the Detroit Pistons' 98-96 victory over the host Washington Wizards. With 4.5 seconds remaining Saturday night and the Wizards trailing by two, Arenas chased down the rebound of his missed free throw. He whirled to put up a potential game-winning three-pointer, but Brown, who was a flop with the Wizards, got a hand on the shot.

Lawmakers oppose United stadium soccer A Prince George's County Council committee recommended Tuesday that the county oppose legislation that would launch planning for a new stadium for D.C. United. In a 5-0 vote, with two abstentions, the council's General Assembly committee recommended withholding support for a bill that would authorize the Maryland Stadium Authority to study the site and financing methods for the project, slated to cost $180 million to $195 million. Though all nine council members also are members of the committee, Council Chairman Marilynn Bland said that the action does not reflect the council's final position on the legislation.

Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas signaled through various sources Monday that a return to the court is possible this weekend against the Detroit Pistons. The three-time All-Star, who hasn't played all season as he recovers from knee surgery, first sent a text message to Comcast SportsNet saying: "I'm playing Saturday against Detroit" and that he would subsequently play only in home games except for an April 8 trip to Cleveland. After the team's morning shoot-around, Arenas was asked by a Washington Post reporter whether the news were true.

Celtics@Pistons 7 p.m. [ESPN] Boston is on a roll again, but Detroit has been struggling of late, having lost eight of its past 12. That raises questions about the integration of Allen Iverson (left) with the Pistons.

1 It's a Blast,: Blast, Blast: The first-place Blast hosts second-place Monterrey at 7:35 p.m. at 1st Mariner Arena. The league is the NISL, by the way. 2 Off the bench: The Pistons have just turned Rip Hamilton into a sixth man. See how it's working (Mavericks at Pistons, 7 p.m., ESPN). 3 Our Pammy: Regardless of who is playing at the Australian Open (7 p.m., 11:30 p.m., ESPN2), Baltimore's own Pam Shriver (left) will be analyzing. 4 Gael warning: No. 5 Mount St. Joseph hosts No. 3 Calvert Hall at 7 p.m. in a matchup of boys basketball powers.

Allen Iverson scored 19 points and Tayshaun Prince added 16 to help the undermanned Detroit Pistons (19-11) win their fifth straight game, 83-75, over the visiting New Jersey Nets (15-17) yesterday. Both teams lost key players during the game. New Jersey's Vince Carter was ejected after arguing a second-quarter call with referee Derrick Stafford, and Rasheed Wallace didn't play in the second half after injuring his foot in the first quarter. 76ers 100, Clippers 92: Andre Iguodala had 28 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, and Philadelphia (13-18)

Allen Iverson scored 28 points to lead the Detroit Pistons to their third straight victory, 88-74 over the visiting Washington Wizards last night. Rodney Stuckey added 18 points and matched his career high with 11 assists for the Pistons, who went on a 12-3 run midway through the fourth quarter after the Wizards had pulled to within 63-62. Detroit allowed only three field goals in the final nine minutes. The Pistons (14-9) haven't lost since they blew a 17-point lead and fell 107-94 at Washington on Dec. 9. "I just waited for my opportunity, and when it came I just took advantage of it," said Iverson, whose output was his highest since a 30-point night at Sacramento on Nov. 11. Mike James, who replaced Juan Dixon (Maryland, Calvert Hall)

1 Let him shoot: A word to West Virginia for its game against Davidson (7 p.m., ESPN): Double-teaming Stephen Curry (left, with ball) doesn't seem like the way to go. 2 Meet the new guard: Good news for the Wizards: no more Chauncey Billups when facing the Pistons (7 p.m., Comcast SportsNet). Bad news: Allen Iverson instead. 3 Schedule up: As Texas takes on Villanova (9:30 p.m., ESPN), consider that the Longhorns might be in the BCS title game if they scheduled somebody tougher than the Wildcats.