Dwight Howard’s 16-24 paces Orlando Magic over the New Jersey Nets 94-78: NBA Recap
Dwight Howard hadn’t quite been in his own so far this season; however on Thursday night, against the New Jersey Nets, a team which is actively pursuing his trade, the ‘superman’ erupted.
The Orlando Magic big grabbed a game-high 24 rebounds, 2 less than his career high, pounded 16 points, made three steals and also swatted three to lead a 94-78 win over the Nets. After the game, the Orlando talisman seemed satisfied;
"I like the way we're heading right now," Howard said after notching his 49th career 20-rebound game. "We're doing all the right things on defense - we're making mistakes here and there, but we'll get it right - and our effort
has been great."
Four other Orlando players also scored in double figures with Ryan Anderson recording 22 points. Jason Richardson added 15 of his 16 points in the first half while JJ Redick had 15 on the night. Hedo Turkoglu, the under fire Orlando
big has another good outing with 11 points, 7 assists and 6 boards.
The game, which was witnessed by a capacity crowd, was the 2500 consecutive for official, d**k Bavetta.
Magic made a fast start to the game and four minutes inside the second quarter, they were leading the Nets by 36-18. However, in the ensuing minutes a 14-3 run helped the Nets restore some balance and the first half ended with
magic leading by only 6, 50-44.
The Nets closed the deficit to three early in the second half, but were stopped by a 7-1 run which again put the Magic in command at 63-53. The hosts kept the pressure on New Jersey and started the fourth quarter with a 75-62 advantage.
Deron Williams, the Nets point guard, who was having a poor shooting night, started the fourth frame with two from the stripe and after Anthony Morrow knocked down a jumper, he dished out an assist to Mehmet Okur for a running
hook shot. However in the space of the next two minutes, he committed two turnovers as the Magic raced away to a 9-2 run, capped by a three point play from Anderson to take an 84-70 advantage.
A suffocating Magic defense ensured that they killed the game in the ensuing passage and jumped to a 2-1 record.
Williams managed only 2 of his 12 field goal attempts and finished with 10 points and 7 assists. He expresses his disappointment after the game;
"It is definitely frustrating. I am not playing well right now and the team is not playing too well right now. It is not time to panic. We are going to have a little bit of struggles just because everybody is learning."
With Williams misfiring, Rookie forward MarShon Brooks made up with 17 points off the bench. Kris Humphries scored 9 points and 10 boards, while Okur and DeShawn Stevenson also scored 9 each.
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