Williams, Hill Bop Boston

With the game and their playoff hopes on the line in the fourth quarter Tuesday night, the Detroit Pistons turned to Grant Hill and their defense.

Hill scored 10 of his 32 points in the final quarter, including the go-ahead basket with 3:01 to play. The defense, meanwhile, held the Boston Celtics to 3-of-21 shooting and forced five turnovers and the Pistons won 92-85.

"It didn't look good at all. It baffles me we came up with the win," Hill said. "It looked like they were the team in the seventh spot and we were out of the playoffs. But I don't think there was a doubt in anyone's mind that we couldn't get back in the game."

"There are a few guys that aren't necessarily big names but because of their skill level on defense and on the backboard can be game changers," Celtics coach Rick Pitino said. "Tonight Jerome Williams, in every phase of the game, was a game changer."

The Pistons wiped out a 10-point fourth quarter deficit on the way to to their second straight win. Detroit clings to the seventh spot in the NBA's Eastern Conference playoff race.

"We didn't play too well in the first quarter. But, we stuck in there and kept it close," Hill said. "We took some good shots down the stretch and executed well."

Paul Pierce led the Celtics with 21 points and Walter McCarty added 17, but it wasn't enough to prevent the Celtics from being swept by Detroit in the season series.

"We took the game away from ourselves," Pierce said.

The Pistons held the Celtics scoreless over the first five minutes of the fourth quarter while they cut Boston's lead to 73-72 on a jumper by Hill with 7:35 left.

"It was a great win for us," Pistons coach Alvin Gentry said. "The one thing we tried to do was put pressure on the inbounds play and force their big men to pu the ball on the floor."

The Celtics turned the ball over 26 times leading to 34 Detroit points.

Hill gave the Pistons the lead for good at 82-80 on a jumper with three minutes remaining. Jud Buechler sealed the win with a 3-pointer with 1:39 to play.

"We played better defensively (in the fourth quarter)," Buechler said. "We realized we were running out of time and then our offense just clicked."

Pierce's three-point play on an over-the-shoulder flip and free throw with eight minutes left in the third quarter capped a 9-3 run that gave the Celtics a 58-43 lead.

But Williams made two free throws to cap a 10-1 run and cut the Celtics' lead to 60-55 with 3:30 left in the third quarter.

Three consecutive steals by the Celtics along with a 3-pointer by Dana Barros and a jumper by McCarty gave Boston its biggest lead, 71-57 with 1:07 left in the third quarter.

Boston led 73-63 going into the fourth quarter.

Pierce scored 13 points in the first half, including four 3-pointers, as Boston took a 47-38 halftime lead.

Notes: The Pistons activated forward Christian Laettner from the injured list prior to the game. He was out since April 3 with a fractured rib. ... Detroit has beaten Boston nine of the last 11 times they have played, including the three games this season.

©1999 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed