NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE Philadelphia faces big challenge after falling behind 2-0 in series

The 76ers are 0-11 in the playoffs when they go down 2-0.
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The Philadelphia 76ers have put themselves in a position they've never overcome.
The Sixers are 0-11 in the playoffs when they go down 2-0. They lost the first two games of their Eastern Conference semifinals series against Detroit, and now face a must-win in Game 3 tonight at the First Union Center.
"It's heartbreaking because we were thinking that we could go up there and steal one from them," forward Kenny Thomas said Friday. "The whole thing now is we have to take care of home court. I know people say we play better on the road, but home court is home court."
After losing the series opener 98-87, Philadelphia had a chance to even it Thursday night. But Allen Iverson missed two free throws that could have iced the game with 15.1 seconds left, allowing the Pistons to tie it in regulation and win in overtime.
The odds are against the Sixers coming back. Only seven of the 162 teams in NBA history that have lost the first two games of a best-of-seven series have rallied to win. The Pistons have never blown a 2-0 lead.
"There's nothing we can do about that now," Sixers coach Larry Brown said. "We gave ourselves a chance to win and didn't get it done. They made plays. We just have to figure out a way to do better."
Injury problems
Detroit again might be without point guard Chauncey Billups, who sat out Game 2 because of a sprained left ankle. His status will be determined before the game. Billups, the Pistons' leading scorer in the playoffs, was injured in Game 1. Chucky Atkins started in his spot Thursday night and scored a career playoff-high 23 points.
Philadelphia also could be without point guard Eric Snow, who has an injured right foot. Snow played through the pain Thursday, scoring 14 points in 40 minutes.
"I am probably 50-50 for the rest of the season if it feels like it feels right now," Snow said after practice.
Stepping up
The Pistons, the top seed in the East, have won five straight after falling behind Orlando 3-1 in their first-round series. Seldom-used rookie Tayshaun Prince has emerged in the playoffs, scoring 20 points in two of the last three games.
Prince made a difficult spinning 4-footer with 4.2 seconds left to force overtime Thursday night, then scored the first five points in the extra session on a layup and a 3-pointer.
"What we're seeing is a young player who is seizing an opportunity," Pistons coach Rick Carlisle said. "He deserves all the credit because to do what he's doing right now is very tough and is not something you see every day.
"A lot of players in his position could have moped during the season and gotten their heads down and gotten upset about not playing as much as they would have liked to or whatever, but he didn't do that. He kept upbeat."
The Sixers plan to pay more attention to Prince.
"We just have to give him a little more respect than we've been giving him," Snow said. "We didn't double-team him. We let him play and in this league, a lot of guys can score on you if you give them the whole side of the court. We just have to make adjustments and give him different looks, make him catch the ball out a little further."
Little help
While the Pistons are getting contributions from several of their role players, the Sixers aren't giving Iverson much help. After getting 18 points and 18 rebounds in the series-clinching Game 6 against New Orleans, Keith Van Horn had nine points and six rebounds in the opener and nine and three in Game 2. Thomas had 15 points and 19 rebounds Thursday, but just two and four in Game 1.
Corliss Williamson had eight points in 10 minutes for the Pistons in Game 1. Jon Barry had 11 points in nine minutes in Game 2.
"The only thing we did was take care of our business at home," said Cliff Robinson, averaging 13.5 points in the series. "They are a very powerful team and we know that in Philly, they are going to come out and try to get even. We are excited about the position we are in. We just can't let the opportunity slip away."