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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| HAWKS | 18 | 26 | 19 | 23 | 86 |
| MAGIC | 21 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 104 |
Recap:
On Saturday night, the Orlando Magic's center was way too much for the Atlanta Hawks, putting up 31 points and 19 rebounds in a 104-86 victory that lifted the Magic (31-16) above the Hawks (30-16) in the Southeast Division.
"We definitely match up well with them," said Magic forward Rashard Lewis. "They don't have anybody that can guard Dwight inside. They were in foul trouble all night; anybody that tried to guard him always had to foul."
Howard drew 13 fouls on Atlanta's overmatched trio of centers. Jason Collins relieved starter Al Horford in the first quarter and was whistled for three fouls in less than two minutes. Zaza Pachulia fouled out in less than 14 minutes.
"Whenever you get a big man dominant like he is, you try to wrap him up down low," said Hawks forward Josh Smith, "and he is able to knock down free throws . . . then what's the use of fouling him?"
Howard converted 11-of-18 free throws, but that was only part of the show. He scored on a fast break and on a variety of jump hooks with either hand.
"He has added a little touch," noted Smith, a remark that brought a grin to Howard's face.
"I don't remember anybody saying I was too finesse," he said. "They said I was too silly; that's what it was."
It was the Magic's sixth straight victory against the Hawks since Atlanta won the season opener on Oct. 29, 2008. The Magic's three victories this season have been by an average of more than 22 points.
"I think we match up well with pretty much anybody else except this team," said Joe Johnson, who led the Hawks with 19 points. "They pretty much have their way with us. I'm sure the coaches will come up with something, but I don't know what to do."
Marvin Williams and Mike Bibby hit 3-pointers on a 10-0 run that netted the Hawks a 10-point lead early in the game. But they went more than 4 1/2 minutes without scoring and the rest of the game was all Magic, although the margin was only five at halftime.
"We looked fatigued," said coach Mike Woodson, a night after his Hawks had beaten Boston convincingly.
"I'm not blaming it on back-to-back games," Woodson added. "We've been fairly good on back-to-back games, but it was like the energy was sucked out of us in the third quarter. Their defense picked up and Howard, being a a load down on the block . . . we've got to figure it out."
Lewis hit a couple of 3-pointers early in the third quarter, and Orlando's lead reached 14 after Howard's three-point play and reverse layup. The bench took over from there, stretching the lead to 20 late in the game.
"We started a little slow and the Hawks made a big run, but we settled down and battled back," Howard said. "I think we did an excellent job of playing inside-out tonight and running the ball. But also on the defensive end, you see a big difference from the first part of the season to now. We're talking more and everybody's rotating earlier.
That's a great sign for us."
The Magic have won five of six, and a win at Detroit on Sunday would make coach Stan Van Gundy the coach of the Eastern Conference team in the All-Star Game on Feb. 14. Only a Magic loss and a Boston win over the Lakers would deprive Van Gundy of the honor, although he's not sure it is an honor.
"If you've go the best record, then it's an honor," Van Gundy said.
"That's not the case."
Cleveland has the East's best record, but Cavs coach Mike Brown coached the East All-Stars last season and league rules preclude a coach doing it twice in a row.
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POSTGAME VIDEO:
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Live Baseline Blog:
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Preview:
(Josh Cohen, OrlandoMagic.com) -- In a highly-anticipated Southeast Division battle, the Orlando Magic host the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.
Already 2-0 against the Hawks in 2009-10, the Magic look to sustain their dominance over their familiar foes.
In the two meetings this season, Orlando won by an average margin of 24.5 points. Dwight Howard racked up 22 points and 17 rebounds in the Magic’s victory on Thanksgiving night at Philips Arena, while a balanced effort guided Orlando past Atlanta at Amway Arena on Jan. 9.
Preventing Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford from having big nights is key for Orlando. The two Atlanta guards were a combined 19-for-57 from the field in their two losses against the Magic.
At the start of the week, the Magic and Hawks were tied for the division lead and third place in the Eastern Conference. They were both a half-game behind the Celtics for second.
If they win on Saturday and finish with the same record as the Hawks at season’s end, the Magic will secure the tiebreaker against Atlanta. Not only would it determine the division winner, but even more important, it would give Orlando home-court advantage over Atlanta should the two meet in the playoffs.
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Game Notes:
Jan. 30 vs. Atlanta: Orlando is 42-36 all-time vs. Atlanta (28-12 at home, 14-24 on the road) during regular season action, including 2-0 this season… The Magic went 3-1 against the Hawks last season… Orlando is 4-1 vs. the Hawks during the playoffs (1996 East Semis)... The Magic have won 10 of the last 16 regular season meetings with the Hawks... Orlando has won eight of the last 11 matchups at home, but lost six of the last 10 meetings on the road… Dwight Howard attended SW Atlanta Christian Academy… Anthony Johnson appeared in 181 career games with the Hawks during a combined five seasons (1998-2001, 2006-08)… Trainer Tom Smith worked with the Hawks for six seasons from 2000-05 as the assistant athletic trainer…Nov. 26 @ Atlanta – Magic 93, Hawks 76: Dwight Howard tallied 22 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks, as Orlando rallied from a 14-point deficit and defeated Atlanta, 93-76, at Philips Arena on Thanksgiving night. It was the fourth consecutive road victory for the Magic. Vince Carter netted 21 points, while Anthony Johnson added a season-high 17 points off the bench. Joe Johnson paced the Hawks with a game-high-tying 22 points. Orlando trailed 51-39 at halftime, but dominated the second half, outscoring Atlanta 54-25. The Magic outscored the Hawks during the fourth quarter, 26-11, and held them to just 38.8 percent shooting from the floor on the evening.… Jan. 9 vs. Atlanta – Magic 113, Hawks 81: Seven Magic players scored in double figures as Orlando defeated the Atlanta Hawks for the second time this season, 113-81 at a sold-out Amway Arena. Orlando broke a season-long four-game losing streak with the victory by shooting 52.4 percent from the floor and 42.9 percent from the three-point line, while outrebounding the Hawks, 45-35. The Magic opened up the game in the second quarter, outscoring Atlanta 37-16 in the period behind Jason Williams’ 14 second quarter points. Matt Barnes led the Magic with 18 points while Marcin Gortat paced the team on the boards with 12. Al Horford led all Hawks in scoring with 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. HAWKS: 40 pts., Tracy McGrady (at Atlanta, 12-8-01)
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. MAGIC: 40 pts., Joe Johnson (at Atlanta, 3-19-06)
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