AUBURN HILLS, Mich – So we have a series after all.

After 48 hours of pondering whether this would be a sweep, where the Spurs rank among the great NBA champions, and whether Tim Duncan is the best power forward of all time, we can now contemplate the fact that the Pistons are one home win away from evening the series. Circumstances can change that quickly in the best-of-seven format.

Change was the operative word on Tuesday, as Detroit changed its ways across the board in order to turn the tide with a dominating 96-79 win. For the first time since the opening quarter of Game 1, the Pistons were the aggressors. Ben Wallace set the tone with a steal and dunk just two seconds into the game, part of a 15-point, 11-rebound, five-block performance that snapped him out of a two-game funk. Wallace’s stats still didn’t do justice to his omnipresent impact at the defensive end, helping hound the Spurs into 18 turnovers.

In addition to Wallace’s about-face, Detroit shifted gears in two important ways on Tuesday: transition offense and defense against the Spurs’ two stars – Duncan and Manu Ginobili.

Offensively, it was imperative that the Pistons run and get some easy baskets. The story of the series’ first two games was Detroit’s inability to score against San Antonio in half-court situations. While Detroit improved slightly in that area in Game 3, the real reason the Pistons’ offense showed such vigor was that they had so many easy opportunities in transition. Detroit scored 20 fast break points on Tuesday after mustering only 18 in the first two games combined. In fact, Detroit’s 20-4 edge in fast-break points accounted for nearly the entire 17-point victory margin.

That offensive outburst, however, owes plenty to the Pistons’ defense. Their transition opportunities resulted from turnovers, something the Pistons weren’t very good at for most of the regular season; despite their outstanding defensive record, the Pistons were below average this year when it came to forcing turnovers and getting steals.

The Pistons went against that tendency in Game 3 by making far greater use of traps than they had in the first two games. The result was 18 San Antonio turnovers, many of which were the kind that led to easy layups the other way. A good example came at the end of the third quarter, when the Pistons surprised backup point guard Beno Udrih with traps that forced turnovers on three of four possessions. Two of those led to Detroit layups at the other end, allowing the Pistons to gain control of the game. The quickly got out of reach from that point, with Spurs coach Gregg Popovich noting afterward that his team had succumbed to Detroit’s defensive pressure.

The other defensive key for Detroit was its defense against the two-headed monster of Ginobili and Duncan. Ginobili played most of the game at half speed after bruising his thigh early in the first quarter in a collision with Tayshaun Prince, but he had already committed two turnovers by that point. Things didn’t improve as the game wore on, with the star of the first two games limited to seven points and six turnovers. (Incidentally, Ginobili practiced yesterday and should be fine for tonight’s Game 4).

Detroit’s approach in Game 3 was to take the initiative against Ginobili, and it worked. Instead of laying off him and waiting for him to drive to the hoop, the Pistons pressured Ginobili, trapped him hard in pick-and-roll situations, and worked to force the ball out of his hands. Once that happened, Detroit’s defensive rotation was outstanding, and the Spurs often shuttled the ball around the perimeter without ever finding an open man.

The defense against Ginobili got most of the attention, but the Pistons also fared much better against Duncan than they had in Games 1 and 2. After Rasheed Wallace guarded him for most of the first two games, the Pistons split most of the Game 3 responsibilities between Ben Wallace and Antonio McDyess. Big Ben rejected a Duncan turnaround early in the first quarter to set the tone, but McDyess was equally effective in a scintillating performance off the bench.

Duncan didn’t help matters with his offensive approach, seeming to go out of his way to take the ball into the teeth of the defense. He admitted after the game that he had telegraphed many of his moves, which made it easy for the Pistons to react. The upshot was his worst performance of the playoffs – 5-of-15 shooting, 14 points, and 10 rebounds. San Antonio could live with an off-night from Duncan or Ginobili, but with both players struggling, the Spurs’ supporting cast was left with too much on their plate.

The one bright spot for San Antonio was Tony Parker, who continued to befuddle the Pistons with his quickness. Parker scored a team-high 21 points and has quietly put together a very solid Finals, with averages of 16.0 points and 50% shooting for the three games. The Pistons haven’t sent much help defense Parker’s way because of their focus on Ginobili and Duncan, so Parker should continue to have opportunities in Game 4. He’s proven he can beat any Piston off the dribble – even defensive ace Lindsey Hunter couldn’t stay in front of the French flash – so the Spurs should look to exploit his speed more often tonight.

In addition, San Antonio might want to steal a page from the Pistons’ book and look to start running again. While Detroit got out in transition in Game 3, the Spurs remained stuck in the mud. Even in winning the first two games, San Antonio scored only eight fastbreak points in each.

Given Parker’s blazing speed, Ginobili’s superb creativity, and Duncan’s ability to run the floor, the Spurs should do much better. They showed this ability in blazing past the Suns in five games in the Western Conference finals; now it’s time to hit the accelerator against Detroit. If they can do that tonight, they’ll change the balance of the series permanently in their favor.

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NO CALLS FOR CARLESIMO – YET

P.J. Carlesimo’s phone still isn’t ringing. The Spurs assistant emerged as a leading candidate for the coaching jobs with both the Knicks and Timberwolves earlier this spring, but both trails appear to have gone cold. When asked whether either team has been in touch recently, “I haven’t talked to anybody,” was all Carlesimo could offer.

Popovich, who is also the Spurs’ team president, gave both teams permission to meet with Carlesimo during the playoffs, but didn’t want ongoing negotiations to interfere with the Spurs playoff run. Nonetheless, Carlesimo isn’t taking the lack of contact as a positive sign. “They’ve both been great in terms of doing what Pop asked,” said Carlesimo, “but it’s not as good a sign as an occasional phone call.”

The T-wolves are rumored to favor Seattle assistant Dwane Casey, while Isiah Thomas appears to be leaning toward keeping interim coach Herb Williams unless Larry Brown becomes available.