In one of the craziest playoff games in NBA history, the Nets blew the game three times, and still were able to pull out the win with one of the most unlikely lineups on the floor at the end. Eight players fouled out, Chauncey Billups hit a miracle Reggie Miller-ish half court shot, and the Nets missed coutless important free throws. Brian Scalabrine was the hero with a career-high 17 points, on 6 for 7 shooting, including 4 for 4 from downtown, the biggest one giving the Nets a four point lead with 41 seconds left in the third overtime. Richard Jefferson finished with 31 points and 11 rebounds, and Kenyon Martin finished with 22 points and 9 boards, despite fouling out with more than 2 minutes left in regulation.
- Boxscore - NBA.com
- Nets 127, Pistons 120, 3OT - Larry Lage - AP
- Discuss It! - BasketballBoards.net
- Absolution - Joe & Champagne - JoeNetsfan
- A Hard Three - Brad Parks - Star-Ledger
- Nets' shooting is foul from the line - Don Burke - Star-Ledger
- No triple frown for Pistons - Chris Nelson - Star-Ledger
- A breakthrough - Bob Considine - Asbury Park Press
- Nets notes: Frank takes blame for Billups bucket - Bob Considine - Asbury Park Press
- Nets beat Pistons in epic Game 5 - Steve Adamek - Bergen Record
- Nets notebook - Steve Adamek - Bergen Record
- Nets react to Game Five thriller against Detroit - MSG Network
- Nets survive triple bypass - Ohm Youngmisuk - New York Daily News
- Nets eager to talk pact with K-Mart - Ohm Youngmisuk - New York Daily News
- Three Cheers For Nets in Thriller - Fred Kerber - New York Post
- Thorn's Feeling Deja Vu - Fred Kerber - New York Post
- The Nets Survive a Game of Fouls and Will - Steve Popper - New York Times
- Nets put Pistons' season on the brink - Chris McCosky - Detroit News
- Billups carries burden in overtimes - Jim Spadafore - Detroit News
- Nets capture triple-overtime thriller; Pistons trail series, 3-2 - Perry A. Farrell - Detroit Free Press
- Pistons go small in overtime - Perry A. Farrell - Detroit Free Press
- Nets win classic Game 5 - Will Weiss - YES Network
- In 3-overtime thriller, Nets win to gain series lead - A. Sherrod Blakely - Booth Newspapers
- Prince had his big chance but he blew it - David Mayo - Grand Rapids Press