ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -Tayshaun Prince scored 23 points, Chauncey Billups added 21 and the Detroit Pistons beat the Orlando Magic 93-77 Thursday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round playoff series.
The victory ended a postseason trend for the Pistons – they had lost their last six Game 3s when leading 2-0 – and left them one victory from advancing to the second round.
Game 4 is Saturday in Orlando.
Detroit’s long-range shooting was the difference. The Pistons finished 8-of-13 from behind the arc. Rasheed Wallace, who had 15 points, was 3-for-3. Prince was 3-for-5, and Billups was 2-for-3.
Jameer Nelson, a defensive liability at times in the first two games, led the Magic with 27 points on 10-of-19 shooting. Dwight Howard, who lacked energy in Game 2 because of a stomach illness, had 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Grant Hill and Hedo Turkoglu, the two who carried Orlando in the first two games, struggled at home. They were a combined 6-of-22 from the field.
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