Schedule and 2008 Results
Regular Season Records: Detroit 59-23, Orlando 52-30
Game 1 on Saturday, 03 May: Orlando loses at Detroit, 91-pts-72
Game 2 on Monday, 05 May: Orlando loses at Detroit, 100-pts-93
Game 3 on Wednesday, 07 May: Detroit loses at Orlando, 111-pts-86
Game 4 on Saturday, 10 May: Detroit wins at Orlando, 90-pts-89
Game 5 on Tuesday 13 May: Orlando at Detroit
Game 6* on Thursday 15 May: Detroit at Orlando
Game 7* on Sunday 18 May: Orlando at Detroit
* if needed

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up 3-games-1:
Ignoring win order; ignoring site order: The team up 3-games-1 irrespective of site (Detroit) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 436-39 (.918)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 142-6 (.959)
series record, NBA only, all rounds: 171-8 (.955)
series record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 78-3 (.963)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 277-198 (.583)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 95-53 (.642)
Game 5 record, NBA only, all rounds: 105-74 (.587)
Game 5 record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 52-29 (.642)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up 3-game-1 at HHVV:
Ignoring win order; considering site order: The team up 3-games-1 with Games 1-2 at home and Games 3-4 on the road (Detroit) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 272-17 (.941)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 95-3 (.969)
series record, NBA only, all rounds: 113-1 (.991)
series record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 55-1 (.982)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 198-91 (.685)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 73-25 (.745)
Game 5 record, NBA only, all rounds: 82-32 (.719)
Game 5 record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 44-12 (.786)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up WWLW:
Considering win order; ignoring site order: The team winning Games 1-2, losing Game 3, and winning Game 4 irrespective of site (Detroit) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 133-8 (.943)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 42-2 (.955)
series record, NBA only, all rounds: 66-1 (.985)
series record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 27-1 (.964)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 90-51 (.638)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 32-12 (.727)
Game 5 record, NBA only, all rounds: 44-23 (.657)
Game 5 record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 20-8 (.714)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

HISTORICAL VICTORY PROBABILITIES: Up WWLW at HHVV:
Considering win order; considering site order: The team winning Games 1-2, losing Game 3, and winning Game 4 with Games 1-2 at home and Games 3-4 on the road (Detroit) has the following best-of-7 playoff series and games record through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds:
series record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 105-5 (.955)
series record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 38-1 (.974)
series record, NBA only, all rounds: 57-1 (.983)
series record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 26-1 (.963)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, all rounds: 75-35 (.682)
Game 5 record, all best-of-7 sports, Qtrs round: 30-9 (.769)
Game 5 record, NBA only, all rounds: 40-18 (.690)
Game 5 record, NBA only, Qtrs round: 20-7 (.741)
These records are drawn from the applicable 1042 best-of-7 NHL, NBA, and MLB series played through the 2008 NHL Quarterfinals and NBA Preliminary rounds. Note in general that the greater the number of games or series fitting a particular situation, the greater the significance of the corresponding winning fraction: For example, 0.800 is far more likely to come closer to the true winning fraction in a given situation when the corresponding win-loss record is 400-100 rather than 4-1.

SERIES NOTES:

After Game 4: Winning the first 2008 NBA Quarterfinals road game after a record twelve 2008 NBA Quarterfinals home-team victories through Games 1-3 in each of the four Quarterfinals series, the Detroit Pistons eked out a 90-pts-89 victory over the Orlando Magic to take a 3-games-1 MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1047 lead. In their ninth best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Orlando Magic are trailing such a series 3-games-1 for the first time. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 3-games-1, the Detroit Pistons have a perfect 9-0 series record and an 8-1 Game 5 record (with the sole Game 5 loss occurring in the last such series for Detroit – series 1013, against the Chicago Bulls in the 2007 NBA Quarterfinals).

After Game 3: Averting a four-games-nil sweep for the first time after having trailed 1-game-nil in a best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Orlando Magic hosted and defeated the Detroit Pistons 111-pts-86, thereby cutting the Detroit MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1047 lead to 2-games-1. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-1, the Detroit Pistons have a 14-2 series record (with the losses in the first and the last of these sixteen series) and a Game 4 record of 8-8. Now in its ninth best-of-7 NBA playoff series, the Orlando Magic trail such a series 2-games-1 for the first time; Orlando averts a four-games-nil sweep for the first time in four tries after having trailed 1-game-nil.

After Game 2: The Detroit Pistons hosted and defeated the Orlando Magic 100-pts-93 to take a 2-games-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1047. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, the Detroit Pistons have an 11-1 series record and a 4-8 Game 3 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, the Orlando Magic have been swept three times, 4-games-nil. While the Detroit Pistons have an 11-1 series record when leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 2-games-nil, they lost their last such series (series 1017, to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2007 NBA Semifinals).

After Game 1: The Detroit Pistons hosted and defeated the Orlando Magic 91-pts-72 to take a 1-game-nil lead in MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1047. When leading a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil, the Detroit Pistons have a 20-4 series record and a 12-12 Game 2 record. When trailing a best-of-7 NBA playoff series 1-game-nil, the Orlando Magic have been swept three times, 4-games-nil (in series 694 by the Houston Rockets in the 1995 NBA Finals; in series 717 by the Chicago Bulls in the 1996 NBA Semifinals; in series 1005 by the Detroit Pistons in the 2007 NBA Preliminary round).

Pre-series assessment: In the 2007-08 regular season, Detroit finished seven games ahead of Orlando. From 1947 through the 2007 NBA Finals, when NBA teams led their best-of-7 playoff series opponents by seven regular-season games, they have posted an 18-3 (.857) best-of-7 series record in those series against those opponents. MLB/NBA/NHL best-of-7 playoff series 1047 is the ninth best-of-7 NBA playoff series for Orlando, and the 39th for Detroit. In best-of-7 NBA playoff series, Orlando has a 4-4 series record, a 2-0 Quarterfinals series record, and a 5-3 Game 1 record, while Detroit has a 24-14 series record, a 10-5 Quarterfinals record with a five-series winning streak, and a 24-14 Game 1 record. Series 1047 is the third best-of-7 NBA playoff series meeting between Orlando and Detroit; Detroit won the first two.