Orlando Magic make it 2-0; Use a big second half to thump Phoenix Suns 115-94: NBA Recap
J.J. Redick scored a game high 24 points while Glen Davis and Arron Afflalo chipped in with 22 each as Orlando Magic came back from a 14 point hole early in the third quarter to carve out a 115-94 win at the Amway Center on Sunday night.
Nikola Vucevic notched up a double-double with 18 points and a game-high 13 rebounds and E'Twaun Moore added 15 for the Magic, who shot nearly 49 percent from the field which included a 9-of-11 performance from the land of three.
Phoenix had four starters in the double figures. Luis Scola led them with 24 points and 7 rebounds; and Michael Beasley added 22 for the 1-2 Suns.
Scola was disappointed with loss and rued a loose second half;
"We played really well in the first half and then we went through the motions and started exchanging baskets. We let them get it going."
Marcin Gortat also had a good game. He went 7 of 12 from the floor to muster 14 points and completed his double-double with 11 rebounds to go with four blocks on the night. Goran Dragic scored 12 points and hauled down 8 assists.
The Suns made a solid start to the game, and trailing by 7-10, they pulled off a 17-5 run to take command of the game deep in the first quarter. What followed was an old fashioned shoot-out between Redick and Scola. The Magic sharp-shooter knocked all of the remaining first quarter 11 points for his side while Scola added 6 of the next 8 for the visitors.
In the opening 4:17 of the second quarter, both sides managed just a deuce apiece, but the Suns gradually pulled away extending their lead to as many as 11 points, before finishing the half ahead by 56-46. They made five of their next six shots to make it a 14 point game, but then went super cold to allow Magic a 37-9 run, bridging the third and the early part of the fourth quarter. That run pretty much sealed the result. The Magic shot 64 percent from the field during the second half.
Redick did not score a single point in the game changing run and was all praise for Afflalo and Davis, who changed the course of the game;
"I saw a change in that third quarter in the energy level. For me, the two guys that really feet the tone for that were Arron and Glen."
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