LeBron James almost single-handedly beat the Pistons a month ago.

The Pistons didn't give him a chance Sunday.

Detroit's `D' forced James to defer to teammates and that strategy helped the Pistons defeat the Cavaliers 87-82 to move one step closer to earning home-court advantage throughout the Eastern Conference playoffs.

"We know he can beat us," Pistons point guard Chauncey Billups said. "We want to make them beat us."