Rashard Lewis scored a career playoff-high 33 points Wednesday and Orlando beat Detroit 111-86 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Magic's first win in the series. The Pistons lost point guard Chauncey Billups just four minutes into the game when he drove to the basket and got tangled up with Orlando's Jameer Nelson. Nelson's leg caught Billups' foot, and Billups fell hard to the court with a strained right hamstring. Billups was averaging 17.5 points in the postseason and had 28 against the Magic in Game 2. Game 4 is Saturday in Orlando. Richard Hamilton scored 24 points for Detroit. With Billups out, rookie Rodney Stuckey stepped up big for the Pistons, scoring 19 points – nine in the second quarter. Dwight Howard had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Magic, who saw Detroit get within 73-69 at the end of the third quarter but pulled away again. The Magic had lost nine straight playoff games to the Pistons, tied for the fourth-longest streak in NBA history, including a first-round sweep last season. “I thought getting off to that start gave us confidence, got the crowd into the game and more importantly gave us a cushion we really needed,” Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy told reporters. “He's their leader, he runs everything,” Van Gundy said of Billups. “It definitely had a huge effect on the game.” Lakers 120, Jazz 110: At Los Angeles, Kobe Bryant celebrated his first MVP award by getting 34 points, eight rebounds and six assists as Los Angeles took a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals and remained the NBA's only unbeaten team in the postseason. “We never got to the point where we felt threatened,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson told reporters, although Utah got within 99-94 with about five and half minutes left. “The offense was going well. We were doing the things we wanted to do.” The series shifts to Utah for Games 3 and 4 on Friday night and Sunday. The Jazz had an NBA-best 37-4 home record this season, but one of the losses was by 11 points to the Lakers on March 20. Bryant received his Most Valuable Player trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern in a brief ceremony before the game. Derek Fisher, who played for Utah last season, added 22 points for the Lakers, who shot 57.4 percent from the field and made 35 free throws – 22 more than the Jazz. Deron Williams had 25 points to lead seven Utah players in double figures. The Jazz outrebounded the Lakers again 41-37, but shot 44.6 percent while attempting a season-high 101 shots – 33 more than Los Angeles.
