Auburn Hills, MI (My Sportsbook) - Chauncey Billups scored 20 of his 28 points in the second half, including a controversial three-pointer in the final second of the third quarter, as the
Detroit Pistons beat Orlando, 100-93, in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Tayshaun Prince added 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Pistons, who have taken the first two contests. Rasheed Wallace also scored 17, while Richard Hamilton had 14 despite a 4-for-18 shooting night. Jason Maxiell had 11 points in the win.
Dwight Howard, who suffered a bruised left thumb in Saturday's 91-72 loss, had a big game with 22 points and 18 rebounds for Orlando. It was a sharp contrast to his 12-point, eight-rebound performance in the opener.
Jameer Nelson canned five three-pointers, on the way to 22 points before fouling out for the Magic. Rashard Lewis had 20 points, but accounted for six of his team's 19 turnovers. Maurice Evans added 13 points and Hedo Turkoglu 12 in defeat.
After hitting all seven of their three-point attempts in the third quarter, the Magic were just 1-of-9 from beyond the arc in the final period.
Game 3 of the best-of-seven set is scheduled for Wednesday in Orlando.
Lewis hit two free throws with 5.1 seconds left in the third to give Orlando a 76-75 edge, but then Billups nailed a three-pointer seemingly at the buzzer. However, the clock malfunctioned and was stuck with 4.8 seconds left, causing officials to huddle and make a ruling. The referees were unable to watch a replay because video review, by rule, is only available when the clock reaches all zeroes to determine if a shot beat the buzzer at the end of a quarter. Officials finally ruled Billups' shot was successful with 0.5 seconds left.
A real-time video replay showed Billups' shot came after 5.1 seconds had expired.
It was tight throughout the final quarter, and Howard's tip-in off a Lewis miss in the lane pulled Orlando within 94-93 with 1:03 remaining. Maxiell then hit one free throw nearly 15 seconds later for Detroit.
Turkoglu took a quick three-point shot, but the ball caromed poorly off the backboard, but the Pistons gave the Magic the ball back again because of a shot clock violation.
Orlando called a timeout with 17.8 seconds left, but Lewis missed off the glass, and Turkoglu couldn't come up with the loose ball in the lane as he was stripped by Theo Ratliff. The ball was ruled off Turkoglu.
It only got worse for the Magic, as Keyon Dooling was called for a foul with 11.7 seconds left, before the ball was inbounded, resulting in one free throw. Hamilton made the shot from the charity stripe. Billups was then fouled with 10.9 seconds left and made both attempts for a 98-93 margin.
Lewis missed a three-point try and Billups' two free throws with 6.1 seconds left sealed Detroit's victory.
The Pistons used a 10-2 run in the opening quarter to expand to a 21-11 lead. Prince's layup capped the burst with 4:26 remaining in the stanza, but the Magic rallied and had the game even after 12 minutes. Turkoglu's driving layup in the final seconds provided the 29-29 tie.
Orlando shot just 2-of-12 from the field in the second quarter and fell behind by a 50-40 margin at the half. Detroit opened the period with a 13-2 spurt, and the Magic's first field goal of the period came on a three-pointer by Nelson, nearly midway through.
Nelson canned a pair from long distance early on and a layup from Turkoglu cut the deficit to 52-48.
A three-ball by Nelson gave Orlando a 65-63 edge with nearly five minutes remaining in the quarter.
Game Notes
The Pistons have won nine straight playoff games against Orlando...The Magic were 2-of-15 from three-point range on Saturday, and finished 11-of-26 on Monday...The Magic are 6-10 (1-6 on road) all-time in Game 2s during their playoff history...The Pistons have won eight straight Game 2s in the playoffs. The last time Detroit lost a Game 2 in the playoffs was against the San Antonio Spurs on June 12, 2005 in the NBA Finals.