Hornets Smoke Pistons

Anthony Mason had 22 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists to lead the Charlotte Hornets to a 98-91 victory over the Detroit Pistons in a battle of two of the East's hottest teams Wednesday.

The Hornets now lead the Pistons by three games in the race for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

The win extended Charlotte's winning streak to four games and took some of the luster off Detroit's 4-1 West Coast trip.

David Wesley added 18 points for Charlotte, while Elden Campbell had 16 points and 13 rebounds. Grant Hill led Detroit with 26 and Jerry Stackhouse added 19.

Charlotte took its first lead of the game, 60-57 midway through the third, by using a 6-0 run. But John Crotty's 3-pointer and a driving layup by Grant Hill let the Pistons regain a 71-69 advantage by quarter's end.

Charlotte opened the fourth period with a 5-0 run, taking the lead 74-71 with 10:16 to go. After Hill's two free throws, the Hornets increased their edge to 79-73 with a three-point play by Todd Fuller and two foul shots by Eddie Jones.

Charlotte led by as many as seven, but Hill'three-point play finished a rally that brought Detroit within 84-83 with 5:44 to go. The Pistons got no closer as the Hornets scored the next four points from the line.

Derrick Coleman missed two free throws, but Jones grabbed the long rebound and David Wesley hit a jumper to keep the Hornets' lead at 92-88.

Hill's short jumper with 45 seconds left got the Pistons within 94-91, but Campbell iced the game with a 10-footer.

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