Category → Recaps
Recap: Orlando Magic 103, Philadelphia 76ers 87
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Philadelphia 76ers by the score of 103-87. The Magic avenged one of their worst losses of the regular season, which occurred on January 30 against the Sixers on the road. Orlando lost 74-69 in that game, which upped their losing streak to a season-high four games. The Magic won this time around. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as six players scored in double-figures. Ryan Anderson blitzed Philadelphia, finishing with a game-high 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field (including 7-of-10 from three-point range). Dwight Howard finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds, and two blocks. Jameer Nelson had one of his best games of the season, putting up 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field, 14 assists, and four rebounds. Jason Richardson chipped in with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting from the field (including 4-of-5 from three-point range), three assists, and two steals. Hedo Turkoglu had 14 points and seven rebounds, while J.J. Redick had 12 points. Super-cub Lou Williams led the way for the Sixers, amassing 21 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field (including 2-of-4 from three-point range and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line), seven assists, and four rebounds. Excluding back-to-back three-pointers by Evan Turner and Williams for Philadelphia at the tail end of the first quarter, the entirety of the period was a microcosm of how the rest of the game would go for Orlando.
Recap: Orlando Magic 102, Minnesota Timberwolves 89
Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images
BOX SCORE
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Minnesota Timberwolves by the score of 102-89. This is a game the Magic led from start to finish, with the Timberwolves making the occasional run here and there. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as six players scored in double-figures. Jason Richardson continued his recent stretch of good games in the past few weeks with another good game against Minnesota, finishing with 17 points on 5-of-11 shooting from the field in about 23 minutes of playing time. Hedo Turkoglu finished with 14 points, six rebounds, six assists, and two steals. Jameer Nelson contributed with 14 points and six rebounds. J.J. Redick chipped in with 14 points and four rebounds. Ryan Anderson amassed 13 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Struggling to get into a groove offensively for a second straight game while also dealing with foul trouble, Dwight Howard had 11 points and seven rebounds in roughly 28 minutes of playing time. For the Timberwolves, they also were led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Kevin Love was the top man for Minnesota, putting up a game-high 19 points, 15 rebounds, and three steals.
Recap: Orlando Magic 99, Milwaukee Bucks 94
AP Photo/Jim Prisching
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks by the score of 99-94. After a quick start by the Magic in the early stages of the first quarter, the Bucks were able to take control of the game for most of the first half. For a majority of the second half, it was a series of runs for Orlando and Milwaukee, with both teams going back and forth exchanging leads. Eventually, after trailing by double-digits with the score at 88-78 in favor of the Bucks with 4:58 remaining in the game, the Magic went on a 21-6 run to close out the contest. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as four players scored in double-figures. Jason Richardson had, arguably, his best game with the Magic since joining the team in December 2010, finishing with a game-high 31 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field (including 9-of-11 from three-point range), 4 rebounds, and two steals. Hedo Turkoglu had a bounce-back game of sorts after struggling to play well the past few weeks, putting up 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting from the field, six assists, and five rebounds. J.J. Redick came off the bench and had 14 points as well as three rebounds. Dwight Howard contributed with 11 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks. For the Bucks, Mike Dunleavy (14 points, three rebounds, and three assists) and Ersan Ilyasova (17 points and 16 rebounds) were bright spots.
Recap: Atlanta Hawks 89, Orlando Magic (OT)
AP Photo/John Raoux
The Atlanta Hawks were able to defeat the Orlando Magic by the score of 89-87 in overtime. With 8.7 seconds left in overtime and the score at 89-87 in favor of the Hawks, the Magic needed a two-point shot to tie the game and a three-pointer to win it. Orlando chose to try for the latter. Jason Richardson missed a game-winning three-point attempt via a screen-and-curl on a side out-of-bounds play. Shortly thereafter, Ryan Anderson got the offensive rebound and passed it to Jameer Nelson, who then decided to shoot a three-pointer of his own. But Nelson missed the shot and Atlanta was able to escape with a victory. The Hawks were led by a balanced attack, as four players scored in double-figures. Josh Smith led the way for Atlanta with a game-high 23 points on 9-of-22 shooting from the field, 19 rebounds, five assists, and three blocks. Marvin Williams had 13 points, six rebounds, and three assists. Joe Johnson chipped in with 14 points and five assists, while Jeff Teague finished with 13 points and three steals. The Magic were also led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Dwight Howard led the way for Orlando with 18 points and 18 rebounds. Ryan Anderson amassed 21 points and nine rebounds. Jason Richardson had 14 points, five rebounds, and two blocks, while Jameer Nelson contributed with 15 points, five assists, and three rebounds. Hedo Turkoglu put up 10 points and eight rebounds. It should be noted that the Hawks played without Al Horford, as he recovers from a torn pectoral muscle.
Recap: Orlando Magic 102, Miami Heat 89
Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images
Facing off against an old rival, the Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Miami Heat by the score of 102-89. The Magic were led by the two-headed monster of Dwight Howard and Ryan Anderson. Howard finished the game with 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field (including 7-of-10 from the free-throw line), 24 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks. Anderson put up 27 points on 8-of-19 shooting from the field (including 5-of-11 from three-point range and 6-of-9 from the free-throw line), 11 rebounds, and three assists. Jameer Nelson had 12 points and three rebounds, while J.J. Redick had 11 points and four assists. For the Heat, it was a lot of Dwyane Wade, some LeBron James, and little else. Wade amassed a game-high 33 points on 15-of-24 shooting from the field. James was relatively quiet for his standards, finishing with 17 points, 10 assists, six rebounds, and three steals. Chris Bosh chipped in with 12 points and nine rebounds. One of the differences in the game is that Orlando got a bit more help from their supporting cast compared to Miami. One of the other differences for the Magic in beating the Heat was that they shot 17-of-42 (40.5 percent) from the three-point line. For Orlando, the 42 three-point attempts was a franchise-record.
Recap: Los Angeles Clippers 107, Orlando Magic 102 (OT)
AP Photo/John Raoux
In a thrilling game that went down to the wire, the Los Angeles Clippers were able to defeat the Orlando Magic by the score of 107-102 in overtime. Jason Richardson missed a game-tying three-pointer, when the score was 105-102 in favor of the Clippers, with seven seconds left that would have extended the game for the Magic. Instead Los Angeles was able to escape with a victory and Orlando’s three-game winning streak was snapped. The Clippers were led by a balanced attack, as four players scored in double-figures. Chris Paul was Chris Paul, finishing with 29 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field (including 3-of-3 from three-point range and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line), eight assists, seven rebounds, and two steals. Blake Griffin finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists. Chauncey Billups chipped in with 18 points and three assists, while also suffering an injury late in the fourth quarter. Caron Butler had 14 points, three rebounds, and three steals but more importantly, he performed in crunch-time (five points) during overtime as Los Angeles finished on a 11-2 run to win the game. Dwight Howard led the way for the Magic, putting up a game-high 33 points on 15-of-21 shooting from the field, 14 points, two blocks, and two steals. Jason Richardson contributed with 20 points and three assists. Jameer Nelson returned to the starting lineup after missing five games due to a concussion and performed well, amassing 15 points, 12 assists, and three rebounds. Ryan Anderson had 10 points and nine rebounds, missing a pair of offensive putbacks following Richardson’s game-tying three that would have given Orlando a chance to keep the game going.
Recap: Orlando Magic 85, Indiana Pacers 81
Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images
Playing for the third time already during the regular season, the Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Indiana Pacers by the score of 85-81. In this season series, the road team has won every game. For the Magic, this extends their winning streak to three games. Three players led the way for Orlando. Dwight Howard had one of his better offensive performances of the season, finishing with 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field (including 7-of-10 from the free-throw line), eight rebounds, three steals, and two blocks. Jason Richardson chipped in with 17 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Ryan Anderson had 12 points and seven rebounds. As for Hedo Turkoglu, he had an odd stat-line, as he finished with nine points on 2-of-11 shooting from the field (including 0-of-6 from three-point range), 10 rebounds, four assists, and eight turnovers. The Pacers were led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Perhaps the player that had the best game for Indiana was Tyler Hansbrough, as he was able to come off the bench and put up 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the field (including 5-of-6 from the free-throw line), seven rebounds, and two steals in roughly 20 minutes of playing time. Yes, Hansbrough put up numbers but it was also his energy and effort that impressed (ditto with Lou Amundson).
Recap: Orlando Magic 102, Cleveland Cavaliers 94
AP Photo/John Raoux
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers by the score of 102-94, extending their winning streak to two games. The Magic were led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Dwight Howard led the way for Orlando with 19 points, 16 rebounds, and eight blocks. After resting from a sore knee the past two games, Jason Richardson made his return to the starting lineup and scored 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field (including 3-of-4 from three-point range). Hedo Turkoglu finished with 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, seven rebounds, and four assists. Ryan Anderson chipped in with 17 points and eight rebounds. Von Wafer came off the bench and played well, putting up 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting from the field in roughly 16 minutes of playing time. Perhaps the one eye-opening stat for the Magic is that they turned the basketball over merely five times against the Cavaliers. And even though Howard shot 9-of-16 from the free-throw line, all 16 attempts came in the fourth quarter as head coach Byron Scott decided to intentionally foul him as the game winded down. Howard’s imbalanced free-throw distribution is probably one of the weirder stat quirks you’ll find this season. Orlando took firm control of the game from the first quarter onward.
Recap: Orlando Magic 109, Washington Wizards 103
AP Photo/John Raoux
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Washington Wizards by the score of 109-103, snapping a four-game losing streak. The Magic have been losing a lot lately, dropping six of their last eight games, so a win — even if it was against one of the worst teams in the NBA — was a welcome sight for them. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as four players scored in double-figures. Dwight Howard led the way for the Magic, finishing with 23 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field (including 11-of-16 from the free-throw line), 18 rebounds, three assists, and four steals. Ryan Anderson finished with 23 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field (including 6-of-9 from three-point range) and seven rebounds. J.J. Redick chipped in with 21 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field (including 3-of-4 from three-point range and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line). Hedo Turkoglu had 16 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Nick Young led the way for the Wizards with a game-high 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field in roughly 21 minutes of playing time. Rashard Lewis had 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field (including 3-of-4 from three-point range), eight rebounds, three assists, and two steals, playing one of his better games since leaving Orlando. Three other players for Washington scored in double-figures.
Recap: Philadelphia 76ers 74, Orlando Magic 69
AP Photo/H. Rumph Jr
The Philadelphia 76ers were able to defeat the Orlando Magic by the score of 74-69. For the Magic, it’s their sixth loss in eight games. Slowly but surely, Orlando is sinking into an abyss of irrelevance with each loss. Andre Iguodala led the way for the Sixers, putting up 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, and two steals, further exemplifying that he is one of the most underrated players in the NBA with his ability to be a playmaker on offense while also being an elite defender. Evan Turner had 12 points and four rebounds, while Thaddeus Young had 10 points, three rebounds, and two steals. Dwight Howard had a game to forget for the Magic, finishing with 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the field (including 5-of-13 from the free-throw line), 11 rebounds, and two blocks. Ryan Anderson put together a sneaky double-double, finishing with 14 points and a career-high 20 rebounds. A decent chunk of Anderson’s numbers came in garbage time during the fourth quarter when the game was decided. Still, it’s rather telling that Anderson had as many offensive rebounds (11) as Howard had total rebounds in about 10 less minutes of playing time. J.J. Redick struggled mightily filling in for Jason Richardson at the starting shooting guard position, tallying 10 points on 3-of-13 shooting from the field alongside five rebounds.
