Auburn Hills, MI (My Sportsbook) - The top-seeded Detroit Pistons hope to stay alive on Wednesday when they take on the Orlando Magic in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

After the teams split the first two games of the best-of-seven series in Auburn Hills, the Magic captured both contests in Orlando to gain a commanding 3-1 edge.

A victory on Wednesday would push the Magic into the second round for the first time since 1995, when they advanced all the way to the NBA Finals before losing to Houston.

The Pistons are trying to avoid becoming the third No. 1 seed to fall to a No. 8 seed in the first round. The Denver Nuggets upset the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1994 playoffs, then the New York Knicks ousted the Miami Heat in 1999. The Nuggets and Knicks both moved on with Game 5 wins on the road.

The Magic pulled within one win of the second round by posting a 100-92 victory in Game 4 on Sunday. Tracy McGrady scored a game-high 27 points and rookie Drew Gooden added 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Magic.

Orlando sealed the victory with an enormous run in the third quarter. The Pistons held a 65-61 advantage in the third before the Magic exploded for 18 straight points and grabbed an insurmountable 79-65 lead. Overall, Orlando outscored the Pistons, 27-17, in the decisive third quarter.

The Pistons got as close as 98-90 late in the fourth, but the Magic held on for the win.

McGrady also dished out nine assists, while Darrell Armstrong had 18 points on 6-of-6 shooting off the bench for Orlando, which captured Game 3 with an 89-80 victory. The Magic made 50 percent of their shots.

"For me, a guy who hasn't experienced the second round, that would be great," McGrady said when asked about bouncing the Pistons in Game 5. "I'm just trying to get this franchise back on track, like it was when I was a young fellow watching Shaq and Penny here."

Chauncey Billups paced Detroit with 25 points and Ben Wallace ripped down 24 rebounds to go along with 12 points. The top-seeded Pistons, who have lost 12 straight road playoff games, shot 41 percent from the floor. Clifford Robinson chipped in 14 points in the losing cause.

Billups sank all 10 of his free throws, but finished just 6-of-20 from the field.