Magic-Wizards Preview

By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN
Posted Apr 09 2012 11:35PM

It's unclear if Dwight Howard will return Tuesday night for the Orlando Magic. His production against the Washington Wizards would be sorely missed.

Howard has some eye-popping numbers against the Wizards, but it appears doubtful he will play as the visiting Magic try for their 10th straight win in this series.

The superstar center missed his third game in two weeks Monday due to back spasms, but Orlando (34-23) cruised 119-89 at home over Detroit. Howard will travel to Washington, but is listed as doubtful.

His absence would be good news for the lowly Wizards (13-44). Howard is averaging 24.3 points and 13.4 rebounds while shooting 73.4 percent during Orlando's nine-game winning streak over Washington.

While Howard sat out Monday, forwards Ryan Anderson (ankle) and Quentin Richardson (sore back) returned from absences for the Magic. Anderson, who had missed the three previous games, finished with 14 points.

"I think obviously missing Dwight is a big piece and it just makes us have to play that much harder to get those hustle points and get those rebounds," Anderson said. "I think we did that...We know how good of a team we are and we've gone through a lot as a group. I think ultimately guys, everybody's playing hard...We're just really having each other's backs and working hard for each other."

Glen Davis started in Howard's place and had 16 points and 16 boards.

"I feel like I'm more frantic when I'm out there for 20 minutes, it's like 'you got to do something,"' Davis said. "But when you're out there longer you get a rhythm, you get a flow and that's just my role right now. But when it changes, I'll just go out for 20 minutes and try to do the best I can."

Orlando has won two straight since a season-high five-game slide. The Magic are tied with Atlanta for fifth in the Eastern Conference, one game behind Indiana.

"There are going to be ups and downs with nine games to go. But I like the level we've played at the last two games and hopefully it will continue," coach Stan Van Gundy said.

The Magic also played Monday without backup point guard Chris Duhon, who was suspended for one game for conduct detrimental to the team.

Orlando has made 36 3-pointers in three victories over Washington this season. The Wizards have shot 41.1 percent in those defeats, with John Wall connecting at 37.7 percent but managing to average 16.3 points.

Anderson is Orlando's leading scorer in the season series with 23.0 points per game, making 13 of 24 3-pointers.

Washington ended a five-game losing streak with Monday's 113-85 rout at league-worst Charlotte. James Singleton and Cartier Martin, both working under 10-day contracts after playing in China earlier in the season, combined for 37 points and 18 rebounds.

"Maybe we shouldn't even have practice with the way those two guys played tonight," coach Randy Wittman joked.

Jordan Crawford led the Wizards with 20 points in 21 minutes. Rookie Jan Vesely had his first double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Wall had 12 assists.

Seraphin's double-double leads Wizards past Magic

Posted Apr 11 2012 2:15AM

WASHINGTON (AP) Kevin Seraphin had a career night for Washington while taking advantage of Dwight Howard's absence from Orlando's lineup.

Seraphin had career-bests with 24 points and 13 rebounds and tied his high with four blocks to lead the Wizards to a 93-85 victory over the Magic on Tuesday night.

"So you've got a night where you don't have to play against the best center in the league," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I would think it helped him a lot."

Jordan Crawford scored 21 points, John Wall had 15 and Cartier Martin and James Singleton - both on 10-day contracts with the Wizards - added 12 points apiece. Washington snapped a nine-game losing streak to Orlando.

One night earlier, Martin scored 19 and Singleton had 18 points and 12 rebounds in a win against league-worst Charlotte.

"We might have to go to all 10-day contracts next year," Washington coach Randy Wittman said. "Some of guys might not like it."

Jameer Nelson scored 19 points and J.J. Redick added 15 for the Magic, who shot 36.6 percent from the field.

Howard missed his second straight game due to back spasms, and fourth in Orlando's six April games. The Magic have lost three of four in his absence.

"From what they're telling me, I'm not real concerned at all," Van Gundy said before the game of Howard's condition. "This is a move to try to get it to 100 percent and not have to worry about anymore."

Both teams were coming off blowout victories Monday. The Magic beat the Pistons 119-89, and the Wizards defeated the Bobcats 113-85. But it was Washington, with the league's second-worst record, that topped Orlando, which entered the day tied with the Hawks for the Eastern Conference's fourth-best record.

"I don't think it was anybody out there with a lack of effort," Van Gundy said. "We just looked slow tonight. We looked very, very slow, I thought. To me, it didn't look like we weren't trying. I thought guys wanted to do it. They just looked quicker than we were."

The Magic went on 11-2 and 12-2 runs in the first quarter and led until Wall's steal and three-point play capped an 11-0 run that briefly gave Washington a lead late in the first half.

After a tight third quarter, the Wizards used a 9-4 run late in the fourth quarter to pull away.

"We simply cannot play well at a low-energy level," Van Gundy said. "We cannot. We don't have a way to do that. And our players understand, and I think they believe that, and I think they know how they have to play, and I think they want to do it. It's just, tonight, we couldn't do it."

Seraphin scored 10 of Washington's first 22 points, and Van Gundy said the decision to overplay Washington's guards - rather than focusing on defending Seraphin without Howard contributed to that.

Notes: Ishmael Smith was Orlando's backup PG on Tuesday after posting five points and three assists against Detroit on Monday, when the Magic suspended Chris Duhon for conduct detrimental to the team. Smith scored eight points, and Duhon, whom Orlando activated, didn't play against the Wizards. . Nene and Trevor Booker each missed their seventh straight game game with plantar fasciitis of the left foot. As they had for previous seven games, Jan Vesely and Seraphin started in place of Nene and Booker. . Rashard Lewis (knee) and Andray Blatche (conditioning) were inactive for Washington. Howard and Hedo Turkoglu (facial fractures) were inactive for Orlando. . Redick converted a four-point play in the first quarter. . Crawford scored eight straight points for the Wizards in the third quarter.

Notebook: Wizards 93, Magic 85

Posted Tuesday April 10, 2012 11:52PM

By Ben Standig, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Kevin Seraphin established career-highs with 24 points and 13 rebounds as the Washington Wizards pulled away from the Dwight Howard-less Orlando Magic late in the fourth quarter for a 93-85 victory Tuesday night.

Seraphin started knocking down interior shots early, scoring 14 points in the first half, but the Magic's early accuracy from distance had the visitors up 13 points in the first quarter. The Wizards (14-24) rallied behind Seraphin and John Wall during an 11-0 run late in the second quarter and the teams entered the halftime locker room tied at 41. After Jameer Nelson's 3-pointer pulled the Magic tight at 80-77 with 4:35 remaining, the young Wizards put the game away with a 9-4 run, capped by Jordan Crawford's corner bomb from beyond the arc. Crawford finished with 21 points and Wall added 15 for the Wizards, who snapped a nine-game losing streak against the Magic and won for the first in four attempts against Orlando this season.

After winning by a season-high 30 points on Monday night without Howard, the playoff-contending Magic (34-24) lost their third game in four tries this month without their center in the lineup. Nelson finished with 19 points and J.J. Redick scored 15 points for the Magic, who shot a combined 36.6 percent from the field. Currently the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference, Orlando sits 1/2-game behind the idle Atlanta Hawks.

QUOTABLE: "So you've got a night where you don't have to play against the best center in the league. I would think it helped [Seraphin] a lot."
-- Magic coach Stan Van Gundy

THE STAT: Playing his seventh straight game at center in place of Nene (plantar fasciitis), Seraphin shot 11-for-16 in addition to playing a career-high 40 minutes and matching his personal best with four blocks. During this recent span, the second-year center is averaging 16.3 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 54.7 percent (52-for-96) from the field.

TURNING POINT: Orlando was 5-for-11 from beyond the arc, led 29-16 late in the first quarter and kept Washington at bay until late in the second quarter. Down 39-30 with 4:21 left before halftime, Chris Singleton's layup started an 11-0 run, which included consecutive baskets by Seraphin and the final five points from Wall.

QUOTABLE II: "They get it going early usually they keep it going. We did a great job of contesting throughout the whole game ... We just kept fighting, Kevin had a big game for us and a lot of our role guys came in and played big minutes."
-- Wall

HOT: In the second half, Crawford led the Wizards with 17 points on 8-for-13 shooting.

NOT: In his second game back after missing three with a sprained right ankle, Ryan Anderson missed six of seven shots from beyond the arc, He finished 2-for-10 overall and scored seven points.

GOOD MOVE: Singleton and Cartier Martin, both working on 10-day contracts, made key contributions while playing the entire fourth quarter. They each scored 12 points and shot a combined 10-of-17 from the field.

QUOTABLE III: "We might have to go to all 10-day contracts next year. Some of the guys might not like it. [Singleton and Martin have] been great, they've been huge for us"
-- Wizards coach Randy Wittman

NOTABLE: In addition to Nene, the Wizards played without starting forward Trevor Booker for the seventh straight game, also due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot. Regardless, the Wizards won their second straight game.

QUOTABLE IV: "[Howard's] getting better so we're not concerned. We have a stretch here with two days off after this ... so we have a chance to make it five days off and [give] it a chance to get [his back] to 100 percent."
-- Van Gundy

UP NEXT: For the Magic, Friday vs. Atlanta, Sunday @ Cleveland, Monday vs. Philadelphia. For the Wizards, Friday @ New York, Saturday vs. Cleveland, Monday @ Dallas.

• Magic: Howard, Turkoglu
• Wizards: Blatche, Lewis

• Magic: --
• Wizards: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 9

• Arena: Verizon Center, Washington, DC
• Officials: #13 Monty McCutchen, #6 Tony Brown, #52 Scott Twardoski
• Attendance: 15355
• Duration: 1:56