Pacers Visit Pistons at Site of the Brawl

It’ll be just another game, the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers insist, when they play tonight at Auburn Hills, Mich.

The last time they met -- exactly 18 weeks ago -- at the Palace, one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history broke out.

“After all the consequences that were paid by players and fans, I don’t expect to see anybody acting up,” Detroit forward Antonio McDyess said.

The Pacers have been reeling since the Nov. 19 melee. The defending NBA champion Pistons suffered a setback from it, but have since rebounded to be one of the top teams in the league.

Indiana forward Ron Artest was suspended by Commissioner David Stern for the season for his role in the fracas, which started on the court before spilling into the crowd and back onto the court. Indiana guard Stephen Jackson was suspended for 30 games and forward Jermaine O’Neal for 15, and his comeback was derailed by a shoulder injury expected to keep him out for the rest of the regular season.

Detroit center Ben Wallace was suspended for six games, and one of his brothers was among the spectators charged in the brawl.

In total, five Pacers and eight fans have been charged in the brawl.

The players -- Artest, Jackson, O’Neal, Anthony Johnson and David Harrison -- and three of the fans appeared in court two months ago and were released on bond. They all are charged with misdemeanor assault and battery.

Another fan, Bryant Jackson, is charged with felonious assault for allegedly tossing a chair toward the Pacers as they were leaving the court.

Last week, three other fans were sentenced to probation and community service for walking onto the court and throwing objects.

The Pistons plan to have “playoff-type security” for the game, meaning they’ll have about 20 police officers and about 25% more unarmed security personnel in the arena.

“Because it’s the first time the Pacers will be back, everybody is going to be watching, so we don’t want one fan to ruin it for everybody,” Piston spokesman Matt Dobek said.

If the season ended now, ironically, Detroit (42-25) would play Indiana (34-33) in the first round, one season after the Pistons beat the Pacers in the conference finals before winning the title.

Since the brawl, Detroit has played at Indiana on Dec. 25 and Jan. 27.

“If that Christmas game was at Detroit, it probably would have been a big deal,” Pacer forward Austin Croshere said. “We’ve got our own problems to worry about right now. We’re battling for a playoff spot.”

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CLIPPERS TONIGHT

vs. Washington, 7:30, FSNW2

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- 1150.

Records -- Clippers 31-37, Wizards 37-29

Record vs. Wizards -- 0-1.

Update -- The Clippers are 24-13 at Staples Center, one victory short of matching the best record in their six seasons in the downtown arena and their best home record since 1992-93, when they were 27-14 at the Sports Arena. They lost last month at Washington, 94-91, when Gilbert Arenas scored 35 points. Former Wizard forward Bobby Simmons led the Clippers with 24 points.

Tickets -- (800) 462-2849.

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Jerry Crowe