Orlando Magic trounce Minnesota Timberwolves 102 – 89 – NBA Recap
With 6 players in double figures, Orlando Magic throttled the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves 102-89 by using a strong second half performance at the Amway Centre. The spirited display by Orlando took their home wins toll to 10.
The night was extra special for Jason Richardson, who played his 1st game after recovering from a knee injury. He evoked the fighting spirit in his team as he led all bench scorers with 17 points.
"It feels good," Richardson said. "I wasn't healthy when I came back from the first time. I still had the bone bruise, but the competitive side wanted me to be out there and play. That's just how I am, I hate sitting down. Once
I got those two days off, I really got the rest I needed."
Forward Hedo Turkoglu along with Jameer Nelson and reserve J.J. Redick scored 14 apiece, while Ryan Anderson and Dwight Howard had 13 and 11 points respectively.
The game remained tightly contested in the opening frame as Orlando scored 29 and Timberwolves netted 26. Anderson was on song in this period as he recorded 10 points for the Magic.
Magic shifted gears in the 2nd segment as they went on an early 12-4 run; stretching their lead to 41-30. Timberwolves failed to scratch off the deficit as they scored only 18 points. Orlando comfortably entered halftime
with a double digit lead as they were up with 55-44.
After halftime Minnesota strived to redeem the deficit in third stanza by making an 11- 4 run with 01:47 in hand that brought the score to 77-66 with Orlando still in the lead. The Magic netted two more points before capping off
the segment at 79-66.
Timberwolves pushed hard in the conclusive period and with 05:47 in hand they trimmed the lead to 8 points. That though was nullified with three back to back 3-pointers, by Jameer Nelson and Redick that placed Orlando back in the
comfort zone with a coherent 96-82 lead.
Both teams scored 23 apiece in the last quarter, as time expired Timberwolves could only narrow the margin of their defeat. Final score Orlando 102-89.
5 Minnesota players climbed up to the double figure index, with Kevin Love on the top as he recorded his double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Centre Nikola Pekovic also hit a double-double by netting 16 points and had
13 assists. Michael Beasley netted 13 and Rookie of the month Ricky Rubio along with Jose Barea recorded 11 points each.
The combined effort though couldn’t help them avoid their 4th consecutive loss. They will get an opportunity to stop the skid on next Wednesday as they host a match against Charlotte Bobcats.
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