Pistons return from break to battle Magic

Detroit looks to continue road dominance

ORLANDO, Florida – The Detroit Pistons look to continue their sudden success on the road when they visit the struggling Orlando Magic on Friday. The Pistons beat the two top teams in the Eastern Conference – Miami and Indiana – among seven wins in the last eight away from Detroit and rolled at Cleveland 115-92 on Monday after two straight home losses. The Magic have dropped the first three on a six-game homestand by a combined 14 points while falling into a tie for 13th in the East.

Orlando continues to have a difficult time putting 48-minute performances together after whittling a 25-point deficit to one in the second half before losing to New York on Monday. The Pistons have posted at least 100 points in seven of the last eight games and Orlando is 0-14 when giving up triple figures this season. Josh Smith has been the go-to player of late for the Pistons, averaging 23.8 the past six contests.

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TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Detroit, FSN Florida (Orlando)

ABOUT THE PISTONS (14-16): Smith is prospering from being more of a focal point in the offense, and leading scorer Brandon Jennings (17.6) has not stopped putting up points, registering at least 21 in three of his last four outings. Rodney Stuckey and Greg Monroe are also averaging more than 14 points, and center Andre Drummond has been a force inside, recording 13.2 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. Detroit leads the league on the offensive glass and is ninth overall on the boards.

ABOUT THE MAGIC (8-20): Arron Afflalo scored 26 points in each of the last two games after missing one with an illness and is just outside the league's top 10 in scoring (21.9). Veteran Jameer Nelson is averaging 15.5 points in the last 10 games while making at least two 3-pointers in all of them, and Glen Davis scored 20 in the failed comeback against New York on Monday, but the Magic are 2-11 in their last 13.

"It's time to win," Davis told the Orlando Sentinel on Monday. "We have to play with a chip on our shoulder."

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Drummond is among the league leaders with 21 double-doubles this season after finishing with nine in 2012-13.

2. Afflalo has at least shared the Magic in scoring 17 times in the 27 games he has played this season.

3. Monroe averaged 18.8 points and shot 58.7 percent from the field in four games against Orlando last season.