Pistons rally to top Magic

Rasheed Wallace posted 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Pistons, who have won three straight and 10 of their last 11.

Dwight Howard was a force with 20 points and 13 boards, while Hedo Turkoglu also notched 20 points for the Magic, who have dropped three straight.

Orlando controlled play for most of the first three quarters and took a 71-67 lead into the fourth quarter before the Pistons finally came alive. Detroit grabbed momentum early, opening the fourth with a 13-2 run, capped by a Billups’ three, to take an 80-73 lead.

The Magic, meanwhile, couldn’t get anything going offensively. Orlando’s first basket of the quarter — a Grant Hill jumper that brought the Magic within 87-81 — didn’t come until there was 1:21 left in the game. Then, with the score 90-84 with 29.5 seconds left, Orlando had one last chance to make it a one-possession game, but Turkoglu’s three-pointer was too strong. Billups hit on all four of his free throws the rest of the way to ice game.

The Magic led 24-22 after the opening 12 minutes and took a 45-44 lead into the locker room. The Pistons briefly held the lead in the third quarter, but Orlando responded and took a four-point advantage heading into the final frame.

Game Notes

Pistons forward Chris Webber and head coach Flip Saunders were whistled for back-to-back technical fouls in the third quarter...Detroit improved to 14-3 since Webber joined the lineup...Hill finished with 15 points and five boards for the Magic, while Jameer Nelson had 10 points and six assists.