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485

Summary:
Born on September 10, 1974, Ben Wallace attended college at Virginia Union, where he studied criminal justice, and currently plays for the NBA’s Detroit Pistons. He stands 6’9″ tall and weighs 240 lbs and is the 10th of 11 children.

Keywords:
Ben, Wallace, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, NBA, basketball, biography, pictures

Article Body:
Born on September 10, 1974, Ben Wallace attended college at Virginia Union, where he studied criminal justice, and currently plays for the NBA’s Detroit Pistons. He stands 6’9″ tall and weighs 240 lbs and is the 10th of 11 children. In his free time away from the court, Ben Wallace enjoys swimming, hunting, fishing and video games. During the off-season, Ben and his wife Chanda reside in Virginia. During his collegiate years, Wallace led his team to the Division II Final Four and an impressive 28-3 record.

The 1996-1997 season marked the rookie year for Ben Wallace, during which he saw only limited action as a reserve player for the Bullets. Having appeared in 34 competitions during the season, he averaged 1.1 point per game. During the 1997-1998 season, Wallace experienced his first NBA career start, during which he grabbed 12 rebounds, against the Indiana Pacers on January 27, 1998. The following seasons gave Ben Wallace additional court time, which allowed him to continue bettering his game. The 2002-2003 season found Ben Wallace missing a handful of games due to injuries, but he still managed to play and start in 73 regular season games.

The 2003-2004 season marked the second consecutive season for which Ben Wallace earned All-NBA Second Team honors and the third consecutive season that he was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. In addition, he wrapped up the season as being the only NBA athlete to be ranked in the Top-10 in rebounds, blocks and steals.

During the 2004-2005 season, Wallace appeared and started in 74 games. He averaged a career-high of 9.7 points per game and finished the season as being the only NBA Player to be ranked in the Top-5 in blocks and Top-25 in steals. In November, Ben Wallace missed six regular season games due to an NBA suspension. As the 2005-2006 season statistics were calculated, Ben Wallace averaged 7.3 points per game, 11.30 rebounds and 1.9 assists. Standing 6’9″ and weighing in at 240 lbs., Ben Wallace stands poised to help make the Pistons one of the frontrunners of the 2006-2007 season.

Fans who would like to request a signed photo or simply send Ben Wallace their best wishes are urged to do so in care of his NBA franchise team. If you are requesting an autograph, be sure to include a SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) along with your request. Some of the most popular items to have signed include a blank index card, trading card or photo. Fans are not advised to send an item that has special sentimental value, is a limited edition or prized possession. As with all autograph requests, there is never a guarantee of a response. For reasons of both time and commitments, some athletes are prevented from answering all fan mail. For this reason, many fans prefer to simply request that the athlete send a signed photo rather than providing their own to be autographed. Letters and requests should be mailed to:

Ben Wallace
Detroit Pistons
The Palace of Auburn Hills
4 Championship Dr.
Auburn Hills, MI 48326

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241

Summary:
In a game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett was frustrated for being called for an offensive foul and reacted by tossing the basketball into the first few rows underneath the basket.

Keywords:
NBA, Sports, NHL, MLB, Tennis, NFL, WNBA, Golf

Article Body:
In a game against the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett was frustrated for being called for an offensive foul and reacted by tossing the basketball into the first few rows underneath the basket. The ball apparently hit a male fan, who was wheeled away to the sound of loud booing. Despite the fact that the fan appeared to be uninjured, Garnett was ejected from the game. Today he was fined $5,000 by the NBA.

Garnett’s teammate, Ricky Davis, was also fined $5,000 by the NBA for kicking a ball into the stands in a loss to the Denver Nuggets on Friday.

Detroit Pistons forward Rasheed Wallace was also fined today for throwing an elbow at Cleveland Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who needed five stitches on his bleeding forehead. The incident occurred in the first quarter of the game on Sunday when Ilgauskas drove to the hoop. Wallace was called for a flagrant foul, which was subsequently upgraded to a flagrant foul two by the NBA.

Wallace did not appear to deny that the elbow was intentional, saying “I’m not going to start the game by cracking a cat in the skull if I don’t get elbowed first.”

Asked if Wallace should have been suspended, Ilgauskas said, “It’s not up to me. You just leave it up to the league.”

Wallace and Ilgauskas will meet again Monday night, as the Pistons and Cavs play in Cleveland.

Hustle & TECHknow is a technology preparatory high school serving dropouts ages 16-19. Hustle & TECHknow is located in Downtown Detroit on the campus of its partner, Compuware Corporation, allowing students first hand view of the corporate technology world. Ida Byrd-Hill, founder of Hustle & TECHknow, believes Corporate America especially technology, is the ultimate hustle and that urban youth need more exposure to this hustle. With that premise she affectionately names this unique school where students attend classes virtually 5 hours a day, Hustle & TECHknow.

Students, ages 13-23, are considered technical natives having been raised with cell phones, DVDs, video games consoles and PM3 players since birth. These students have developed the skill of self challenge that drives their mastery of video games in which they can be found manipulating — every day of the week sitting for hours. Their intensity and seriousness surrounding video games have caused major retailers such as EB Games and Gamestop to move to inner city locations to capture their business.

Students will receive a high school diploma as this school is one of the 13 schools contracting with Detroit Public Schools to attract and assist high school dropouts complete their high school diploma. While a high school diploma is necessary in today’s world, it takes more than a high school diploma for students to successfully move into the world of work. It requires business etiquette and technology skills. Hustle & TECHknow students have completed a business Protocol class, a series of professionalism classes developed by Compuware’s recruiting department. They are now learning business social etiquette and standard American culture.

Employers, who are interested in employing these tech forward students, please call Hustle & TECHknow at 313-961-0701 to schedule an appointment, tour, or discussion.

A ticket to a Detroit Pistons game, as for any NBA game, is sold through many ways. There are several options for a Pistons fan. First of all, you need to know the game schedule so that you can then choose which game or games you want to attend. Do you want to go to a game located nearby or are you more concerned about who the Pistons will be playing? Then of course you’ll want to think about what section, row, and seat you prefer to sit in. You can purchase Premium Seats if you don’t mind spending a little extra money and want to get close to the action. Here, you can have your picture taken with your favorite player or even get a signed autograph.

There are also ticket packages. The Season Plan grants you access to every Detroit Pistons game of the season, while the Half Season Plan grants you tickets to attend less games ? you can choose to attend 5 or 10 games in this case. There are also ticket packages for Preseason, Regular Season, Playoffs, and Finals. Then of course there are special discounted tickets for large groups.

You can purchase single tickets or subscribe to an aforementioned plan through direct sellers or retailers ? and it is common for people to buy tickets via the Internet. Some websites even offer images of the stadium so a basketball fan can handpick the most ideal seats.

It is easy to purchase tickets online and some websites and dealers even offer memberships on top of normal ticketing services, which allow you to take advantage of special discounts and giveaways, especially during the holiday season. Another benefit of buying tickets through a website, is information regarding events, venues, dates, and times are easy to retrieve as well.

Be cautious though. You might inadvertently buy counterfeit tickets. The team’s official website will instruct you on how to determine the difference between authentic and fake tickets.

After you’ve purchased your tickets, the next step is to enjoy the game!