For a while, A.I. was M.I.A.

But Iverson scored 20 of his 23 points in the second half to lead the Pistons to a 93-90 win and end Denver's five-game winning streak.

"It was emotional, being that I had so many memories," said Iverson, who said he couldn't take his customary afternoon nap because he was so antsy. "I felt like this was a place where I was going to finish my career."

Then again, Iverson wondered if he would be finished himself if the Pistons didn't win.

With 5.5 seconds left and the Pistons leading 91-88, Iverson tried to foul J.R. Smith before he could get off a shot. But Iverson arrived too late, and he fouled Smith shooting a three-pointer.

"I told my teammates that, once we got to Utah (Detroit's next game), they would have to board up my windows and take all the sheets out of my room because I would have killed myself had we lost this game being that I gave J.R. those shots," Iverson said.

Fortunately for Iverson, Smith missed the first free- throw attempt before making the next two to cut the deficit to 91-90.

After Pistons guard Aaron Afflalo made two foul shots for a 93-90 lead with 4 seconds left, the Nuggets had one more opportunity. But Billups, known as Mr. Big Shot, misfired on a running 31-foot three-pointer just before the buzzer while the Nuggets had no timeouts left.

"With 4 seconds to go and the full court, they know you're trying to get that shot off and you're not going to get a good look," said Billups, who scored 20 of his game-high 30 points in the first half.

After the game, Billups gave Iverson a big hug. That only completed the evening's greetings for Iverson.

When he was introduced, Iverson, who played nearly two years with the Nuggets, got a standing ovation. He saluted twice, blew the crowd kisses, then saluted twice more.

"It was priceless," Iverson said of his introduction. "(Iverson) got familiar with the fans, started to know fans by their name."

Iverson meant it. After the game, while enjoying a quiet moment with Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke, Iverson said, "You've got the best fans."

Of course, the fans also wanted a Nuggets win.

Denver, which led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter, never trailed until forward Tayshaun Prince put the Pistons ahead for good, at 87- 86, on a short hook in the lane with 20.6 seconds left.

"All of us wanted him to play well and lose," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "What we got was, he played OK and won."

Karl, who hadn't talked to Iverson since the trade, greeted Iverson warmly when he came over to Denver's bench before the game. Then Iverson, who admitted the emotions of the night might have played a role, went out and shot just 1-for-8 in the first half for three points.

"I couldn't play any worse," Iverson said of getting it going in the second half.

Meanwhile, Billups had a big first half as the Nuggets took a 48-38 lead. But Karl, who called it a tough loss and said his players shot too many jump shots, said Denver should have led by more at intermission.

Billups slowed down a bit in the second half. But he still finished 11-for-19 after shooting 8-for-12 in the first half.

"It was fun," Billups said of competing against his former team. "It was all fun at the start but at some point it becomes trying to win. . . . There were a couple of times in the third quarter when I kept looking up and . . . thought we were down because I kept looking at the Pistons (score)."

Billups said it will be more emotional when he plays at Detroit on March 3. He then hopes to go against a full Pistons cast; Richard Hamilton and Rasheed Wallace were out Friday because of injuries.

The Nuggets, meanwhile, played their second game without forward Carmelo Anthony, out until late January or early February because of a broken right hand.

Billups was acquired by Denver along with since-traded center Cheikh Samb and forward Antonio McDyess, who had his contract bought out Nov. 10 after he didn't want to play in Denver.

McDyess, who scored six points and had 12 rebounds in 23 minutes, was booed regularly throughout the game and at one point put his hands behind his ears in mock fashion.

But there were few boos heard for Iverson.

Pistons 93, Nuggets 90 FG FT Reb

DETROIT Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts

Prince 41:58 7-15 4-6 1-6 4 0 19

Johnson 22:09 3-4 0-1 1-2 0 4 6

Brown 23:55 0-3 0-2 2-8 1 2 0

Iverson 42:20 6-18 9-11 0-4 3 3 23

Stuckey 30:55 4-9 1-4 0-4 2 2 9

Maxiell 21:28 3-4 3-6 4-7 0 1 9

Bynum 4:41 0-1 0-0 1-1 1 2 0

Afflalo 20:54 4-9 8-8 2-2 0 3 17

McDyess 23:06 3-5 0-0 3-12 0 5 6

Herrmann 8:35 1-5 2-2 0-0 1 0 4

Totals 240 31-73 27-40 14-46 12 22 93

Percentages - FG .425, FT .675. Three-point goals - 4-20, .200 (Iverson 2-7, Prince 1-4, Afflalo 1-5, Herrmann 0-2, Stuckey 0-2). Team rebounds - 10. Team turnovers - 10 (7 pts.). Blocked shots - 4 (Afflalo, Brown, Johnson, Maxiell). Turnovers - 10 (Stuckey 3, Prince 2, Afflalo, Bynum, Iverson, Johnson, McDyess). Steals - 5 (McDyess 2, Stuckey 2, Iverson). Technicals - None.

FG FT Reb

DENVER Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts

Kleiza 34:22 0-6 1-2 0-4 0 2 1

Martin 38:17 6-15 2-2 1-6 0 3 14

Nene 35:53 3-7 9-12 2-9 0 4 15

Jones 29:12 2-3 2-2 1-5 2 5 6

Billups 34:07 11-19 7-7 0-4 4 4 30

Smith 26:56 3-13 5-7 1-3 4 2 11

Andersen 19:23 1-3 2-2 1-2 0 1 4

Carter 21:50 4-6 0-0 1-5 2 4 9

Totals 240 30-72 28-34 7-38 12 25 90

Percentages - FG .417, FT .824. Three-point goals - 2-13, .154 (Carter 1-2, Billups 1-5, Martin 0-1, Kleiza 0-2, Smith 0-3). Team rebounds - 9. Team turnovers - 10 (13 pts.). Blocked shots - 2 (Andersen, Nene). Turnovers - 10 (Martin 4, Nene 2, Andersen, Billups, Carter, Smith). Steals - 8 (Nene 2, Jones 2, Carter, Kleiza, Martin, Smith). Technicals - Billups, 6:28 third.

Detroit 17 21 23 32 - 93

Denver 25 23 19 23 - 90

A - 19,682 (19,155). T - 2:29. Officials - Joe DeRosa, Bennie Adams, Brian Forte.

INFOBOX