Magic-Nets Preview

By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN
Posted Feb 21 2012 1:14PM

The New Jersey Nets plan to ease Brook Lopez back into action from a broken right foot, but there's nothing easy about Lopez's next assignment considering how he's been dominated by Dwight Howard.

Howard has helped the Orlando Magic win eight straight over the Nets heading into Wednesday night's matchup at the Prudential Center.

Lopez made his season debut with nine points and two rebounds in 22 minutes Sunday as the Nets suffered their sixth straight home loss, 92-85 to Milwaukee.

"It felt good," Lopez said. "My arch was a little sore, but I think that was just the orthotic. It was just exciting to be out there playing with the guys."

Coach Avery Johnson opted to rest Lopez during a 100-92 win at New York on Monday, indicating he will be back in the lineup Wednesday.

Waiting for him will be Howard, who had 16 points and 24 boards to lead Orlando (21-12) to a 94-78 win at New Jersey on Dec. 29.

"Of course it changes things because now they have someone to drop it into in the low post," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said of Lopez's return. "So they'll be considerably better and have more options on that end of the floor plus obviously they're a lot bigger so it helps them a lot."

The 7-foot, 265-pound Lopez, however, hasn't been much of a factor against the 6-11, 265-pound Howard in the past. He's averaged 13.7 points, 38.0 percent shooting and 5.3 rebounds over the last seven head-to-head meetings - all below his career averages - as Orlando won each one.

Howard has averaged 20.4 points and 64.1 percent from the field to go along with 14.7 rebounds in those seven games. The Magic center has also been more imposing defensively with 25 blocks compared to seven for Lopez in that span.

While the Magic seem to have an edge up front, the Nets' advantage lies in the backcourt with Deron Williams, who scored a season-high 38 points Monday to emphatically win his point guard matchup with Knicks sensation Jeremy Lin.

"We definitely had this game circled," Williams said. "We'd be lying if we say we didn't."

Williams has faced Orlando once with New Jersey (10-24), scoring 10 points and shooting 2 of 12 in December, but the Magic are wary of the All-Star guard.

"He's one of the best in the league," Van Gundy said. "It's never easy when you play him."

Orlando won for the fifth time in six games Monday, 93-90 at Milwaukee. Howard recorded his East-leading 26th double-double with 28 points and 16 boards and Ryan Anderson hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 18.1 seconds left.

"Both teams played hard, but we were just able to close it out," Howard said. "We stayed with it and stayed together and got a good win."

Anderson, a first-round pick by the Nets in 2008, has made 15 of his last 26 3s and is shooting a team-best 44.0 percent from beyond the arc.

Magic guard Jason Richardson has missed the last two games with a chest virus, but could return Wednesday.

The Nets have not dropped seven in a row at home since a 14-game slide Jan. 29-March 22, 2010.

Dwight Howard dominates in audition for Nets

By TOM CANAVAN
Posted Feb 22 2012 11:10PM

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) Dwight Howard aced his audition for the New Jersey Nets.

The Orlando center had 20 points and 17 rebounds, threw in a couple of blocks and dunks and had Nets' fans chanting his name throughout the game in leading the Magic to a 108-91 victory on Wednesday night in what was certainly a showcase for next month's trading-day deadline.

Here's the situation heading into the March 15 deadline. Howard has asked to be traded and the Magic stand to lose the six-time All Star and the leading vote getter in this year's exhibition game unless he signs an extension before becoming a free agent in July.

"Right now my only concern is winning games, playing as hard as I can every night," said Howard, who rocked the rim several times with monster dunks in making 9 of 13 from the field.

"That's the only thing I can control. I put all the other thoughts aside. The only thing I can control is what I do on the court."

Many in the crowd of 15,364 did their best to recruit the seven-year veteran for the Brooklyn-bound Nets.

He got the loudest cheers in the pre-game introductions and many in the crowd had giants placards with his face on them, including one next to a placard that had the face of Nets All-Star guard Deron Williams.

"It's a humbling experience," Howard said. "I wish more people could see how it feels to go into another arena and have the big faces, the posters. It's a blessing and a whole new experience. It feels good to have a great reception, not only here, but everywhere I go."

Howard didn't disappoint the fans in leading the Magic to their ninth straight win over the Nets, who proudly put posters of their new arena in the hall leading to the Magic locker room.

Nets center Brook Lopez, who has been rumored to be part of the package the Nets have dangled in front of Orlando, smiled when asked how the fans reacted.

"It was interesting," said Lopez, who had 15 points in his second game back after surgery for a broken right foot. "It was definitely exciting. It brought great atmosphere to the game."

Williams joked he was jealous about all the cheering for Howard.

"I might not re-sign here because of that," said Williams, who had 23 points, six rebounds and eight assists to lead New Jersey, which headed into the All-Star break having lost 8 of 11.

Glen Davis, who hit his first seven shots, added 16 points for Orlando, which won for the eighth time in 11 games.

Rookie MarShon Brooks had a career-high 24 points for New Jersey, which basically lost the game in the opening 12 minutes.

Orlando shot 62.5 percent in the opening quarter and jumped to a 34-17 lead. The final 4:16 were the key with the Magic closing the quarter with a 13-2 spurt that came mostly with Howard sitting on the bench.

Davis hit all four of his shots and Jameer Nelson, who also had eight points in the period, hit a 3-pointer, one of 13 on the night by Orlando.

Nets' fans started chanting: "We want Dwight" in the final minute and it continued late in the game.

Orlando increased the lead to 22 points in the second quarter, and the only time it was challenged was in the third quarter when Williams put on a show for Howard, his good buddy, hitting three straight 3-pointers and scoring 12 straight points to get the Nets within 67-57.

After New Jersey blew a couple of chances to get the lead under double figures, Orlando closed the quarter with a 16-9 spurt to take an 87-70 lead into the final quarter.

JJ Redick started and ended the run with 3-pointers and Chris Duhon, who came off the bench to slow down Williams on the defensive end, sandwiched two 3-pointers and a jumper in scoring eight straight points for the Magic.

Howard only played five minutes in the fourth quarter and then took in the adulation.

"Obviously people are excited over potential stuff," said Magic forward Ryan Anderson, who added 14 points. "It's something that we don't let bother us or get in our heads. It's what we expected. It's going to happen at a lot of places because obviously we have the best guy in the NBA right now."

Redick had 12 and Hedo Turkoglu and Nelson had 10 apiece for Orlando.

NOTES: Nets played without power forward Kris Humphries, who was sidelined with a strained left calf. ... Nets F Shawne Williams had surgery earlier in the day to repair an old fracture and remove two small bone fragments in his left foot. He will miss the rest of the season. ...With all the injuries, this was the Nets' 17th starting lineup. ...Orlando is 15-1 when it scores more than 100 points. ... Williams' streak of 25-point games ended at six, tied for second best in Nets history.

Notebook: Magic 108, Nets 91

Posted Wednesday February 22, 2012 11:50PM

By Abe Schwadron, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Dwight Howard racked up 20 points and 17 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic cruised past the New Jersey Nets, 108-91 after jumping out to a 17-point first-quarter lead. MarShon Brooks scored 24 points and Deron Williams added 23 points and dished out 8 assists, but the Nets were outrebounded 46 to 37 (16 offensive rebounds for the Magic) and had no answer for Orlando's inside-outside game. When Howard wasn't dominating inside, he kicked the ball out to open shooters on the perimeter, as the Magic hit 13 3-pointers. The Nets cut the lead to 10 thanks to a third-quarter show from Williams and Brooks, but Orlando led by as many as 22 in the fourth quarter and improved to 22-12 on the year with the win.

The Nets led 5-4 in the first quarter, and never led again for the remainder of the game. In the opening period, New Jersey shot an abysmal 38 percent from the floor, and 0-for-4 from three-point range. Meanwhile, Orlando shot 63 percent and made four 3-pointers, getting eight points apiece from Jameer Nelson and Glen Davis, who shot a combined 7-7 from the field in the first.

QUOTABLE: "How many lineups have I started now ... 17?"
-- Nets coach Avery Johnson on Nets injuries.

THE STAT: Orlando shot 54 percent and outscored New Jersey 54-30 on points in the paint.

TURNING POINT: With the Magic leading 64-47 early in the third quarter, Williams and Brooks led a comeback, using a 14-7 run to cut the Magic's lead to 71-61 and had all the momentum. But New Jersey never got any closer than that, as J.J. Redick drained a 3-pointer and Howard slammed home a dunk on consecutive possessions, and the ensuing Williams' drive ended with a Howard blocked shot and a Chris Duhon 3-pointer at the other end.

QUOTABLE II: "Right now my only concern is winning games, playing the best I can every night...the only thing I can control is what I do on the court. That's the only answer I can give."
-- Howard on his future in Orlando.

HOT: Brooks and Williams in the third quarter. The pair combined for 23 of the team's 29 points in the third, including a stretch over which Williams scored 14 straight New Jersey points, 12 coming form beyond the arc. The team's two leading scorers on the year finished the game having shot a combined 18-for-33 from the field and 8-for-15 from deep.

NOT: The Magic won big despite shooting just 5-for-15 from the free throw line. In the first half, Orlando shot just two free throws, and missed both. Ten of the team's free throws came courtesy of Howard, who missed eight of them.

GOOD MOVE: Duhon played 17 minutes and shot 3-for-3 with eightpoints in the third quarter, including two huge 3-pointers, as the Magic staved off the Nets' mini-run. Duhon finished with 11 points, marking just the second time all season he's scored in double figures (his season-best is 14).

BAD MOVE: For a stretch, the Nets were so desperate up front that Johnson played DeShawn Stevenson at power forward. The gimmick didn't work, and didn't last long. Stevenson was 0-for-3 (all 3-pointers) on the night and scored zero points.

QUOTABLE III: "We've got to figure out how to play better at home in this building. And we've got to figure out how to play better against smaller shooting four men that spread the floor."
-- Johnson on Nets injuries.

INSIDE THE ARENA: With Nets part-owner Jay-Z sitting courtside, fans at the Prudential Center began chants of "We Want Dwight" as early as the end of the first quarter, and started in again late in the fourth.

NOTABLE: Rookie DeAndre Liggins played in just his second career NBA game, scoring five points in just over three minutes, and former first-round pick Daniel Orton appeared in just his second game this season. Orton saw his first action since January 27 against the Hornets, but did not score.

UP NEXT: For the Nets, Feb. 28 @ Dallas, March 2 @ Boston, March 4 @ Charlotte. For the Magic, Thursday @ Atlanta, Feb. 29 @ Washington, March 1 vs. Thunder.

• Magic: Harper, Richardson
• Nets: Humphries, James, Williams

• Magic: --
• Nets: --

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: Prudential Center, Newark, NJ
• Officials: #48 Scott Foster, #26 Pat Fraher, #78 Scott Bolnick
• Attendance: 15364
• Duration: 1:58