76ers-Magic Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Apr 15 2012 10:43PM

The Orlando Magic are going to the playoffs again, but coach Stan Van Gundy is preparing for a postseason without Dwight Howard and Hedo Turkoglu - and that list may grow.

The Magic may be without Glen Davis on Monday night when they try to continue their dominance of the visiting Philadelphia 76ers.

Orlando (35-25) is tied with Atlanta for fifth in the Eastern Conference, and clinched its sixth consecutive trip to the playoffs after beating Cleveland 100-84 on Sunday.

It was also the fourth straight game for the Magic without Howard, out indefinitely with a herniated disk in his back, and fifth without Turkoglu (facial fracture).

Van Gundy is planning to be without his All-Star center and starting forward for the rest of the season and the playoffs.

"We're approaching it that the 13 (healthy) guys we have now are who we're going to have the rest of the season and in the playoffs," Van Gundy said.

The Magic suffered another blow when reserve Glen Davis, filling in for Howard, exited Sunday's win with a sprained right knee. He'll undergo further examination, but there's no timetable for a return.

"He hyperextended his knee, so my guess would be that he'd not play," Van Gundy said. "I haven't been told anything officially, though."

With the injuries piling up, Orlando could use another big effort from Jameer Nelson, who had 21 points and nine assists against the Cavaliers after making just 4 of 14 field goals and finishing with nine points and four assists in a 109-81 loss to the Hawks two days prior.

Nelson is averaging 14.6 points and 7.2 assists in his last 11 home meetings with Philadelphia (31-28).

Ryan Anderson is averaging 18.2 points in his last five games versus the Sixers, including 27 in a 103-87 home victory Feb. 15. However, he has shot 21.2 percent from the floor - 2 for 19 from 3-point range - to total 22 points over his last three games overall.

The Magic have won 17 of their last 20 meetings with Philadelphia, including two of three this season while holding the 76ers to 81.0 points per game.

While Orlando is already preparing for the playoffs, the Sixers didn't help their chances in Friday's 95-89 loss to New Jersey, failing to secure a three-game winning streak with a defeat to a team already eliminated from postseason contention.

"'We're going to have to step up as a team and not fear it," said forward Elton Brand, who scored all eight of his points in the first quarter. "This is an exciting time. Let's keep playing, let's keep getting it together."

Philadelphia guard Lou Williams, the team leader with 15.0 points per game, has combined for 18 in his last two games. He's averaging 18.5 in his last six meetings with the Magic, and had 21 at Orlando in February.

Jrue Holiday, who scored a team-high 19 points Friday, has made just 6 of 28 shots from the floor and has totaled 14 points against the Magic this season.

Anderson leads way as Magic hold off 76ers 113-100

By KYLE HIGHTOWER
Posted Apr 16 2012 10:39PM

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) It's no secret that Dwight Howard probably won't be walking through the Orlando Magic locker room door the rest of the regular season.

Not an ideal situation, for sure. But for team that has already locked up a playoff berth, it has at least eliminated the daily guessing game going into this final stretch of the regular-season.

The bottom line is the Magic will have to win with the players they've got. And for the second straight game they embraced the hand they've been dealt.

Ryan Anderson had 26 points and 16 rebounds, J.J. Redick scored 18 points and the Magic held off the Philadelphia 76ers 113-100 on Monday night.

The Magic won their second straight game and played their fifth consecutive without All-Star center Dwight Howard, who is out indefinitely with a herniated disc in his back. He has missed seven games overall with the injury, and Orlando improved to 3-4 in his absence.

"This is what the NBA and team sports are all about," said forward Quentin Richardson, who scored 13 points. "Guys go down, that's unfortunate, but it gives other guys opportunities that they never had before. Daniel (Orton) and Earl (Clark) - guys are making the most of it... This is one of the best victories I've been a part of in a while."

Glen Davis joined Howard and Hedo Turkoglu (out for regular season with facial fracture) on the inactive list Monday, sitting out with a sprained right knee.

Davis suffered the injury during the Magic's win at Cleveland on Sunday, ending a string of eight consecutive starts he made in place of either Howard or Anderson.

The good news for the injury-plagued Magic, though, was there was no structural damage shown in an MRI taken on Davis' knee.

With Davis out, Daniel Orton made his first career start. Other than a pair of starts at the Magic's D-League affiliate last season, it was Orton's first start since the state championship game his senior year of high school in Oklahoma. He followed up a career scoring night against Cleveland with six points and six rebounds against the Sixers.

Clark was equally active, tying a career-high with 14 points and setting a new one with 11 rebounds. It was his first-ever double-double.

Jameer Nelson also had a double-double with 16 points and 13 assists. The last time the Magic had three double-doubles in a game was Nov. 4, 2009, at home against Phoenix.

"That's was just tremendous team effort," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. "And it's two games in a row now, this against a playoff team needing a win. Obviously we want to get guys and get them healthy, but it's not about one or two guys, it's about a team. And that's what we've been the last two nights is a team."

Jrue Holiday led Philadelphia with 18 points and Andre Iguodala, Thaddeus Young and Lou Williams each finished with 15.

Both teams shot 50 percent for the night, but the Magic were aided by a 46-30 rebounding advantage.

The Sixers lost their second straight game. They continue their second back-to-back-to-back stretch of the season Tuesday against Indiana.

"They just shot the lights out," Philadelphia coach Doug Collins said. "They really did."

Evan Turner said it seems like Anderson perks up when he plays against them.

"He'd be a Hall of Famer if he played against us every day," Turner said. "He knows how to work the system to his advantage. It seems like he never misses versus us."

To counter the Magic's small lineup, the Sixers started Elton Brand at center, though foul trouble limited his effectiveness.

The shorter lineups produced fast-paced basketball on each end. It led to a game played on the perimeter with Orlando shooting 11 for 18 (61 percent) from beyond the arc. The Sixers were 9 for 18 on 3-pointers.

The Magic led by 15 in the third quarter before having their lead trimmed to seven on a 3 by Williams with just under 3 minutes to play.

It was 106-99 after a jumper by Turner before Nelson's back-to-back baskets pushed the lead back to 11 to seal it. Nelson finished with 16.

Brand was forced to the bench less than 9 minutes into the game after picking up his second foul and sat the rest of the first half as the Magic took a six-point lead into halftime.

Orlando also got help from six 3s in the half.

Anderson led the scoring wave with 15 points. He was followed by Richardson, who scored all of his eight points in succession during a 12-2 Magic spurt to start the second quarter.

As strange as it might sound, Jason Richardson said Howard is the last thing the team is thinking about.

"We're just playing ball," he said. "When he gets back it'll be great. We definitely want him back because we know how dominant he is on both ends of the floor. But right now we're just going with whoever is on the floor."

NOTES: The Magic improved to 24-4 when scoring 100 or more points. ... Davis said he is expecting to be ready to play the Magic's game at Boston on Wednesday. "Luckily I've got big bones," Davis joked in the locker room before the game. Before he had the streak broken against Cleveland Sunday, Davis had seven straight games in double-figures. ... Collins said that he isn't dwelling on the inopportune timing of his team's second back-to-back-to-back of the season. He said having the New York Knicks on their heels for the seventh spot also helps them focus on each game. "It's one of those mental things and we just gotta fight through it. We've got too much at stake," Collins said.

Notebook: Magic 113, Sixers 100

Posted Monday April 16, 2012 11:05PM

By Dick Scanlon, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Ryan Anderson, Jameer Nelson and Earl Clark had double-doubles, leading the injury-depleted Orlando Magic to a 113-100 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.

Anderson scored a game-high 26 points and took down a game-high 16 rebounds while Clark, coming off the bench, grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds and matched his career-high of 14 points. Nelson finished with 16 points and 13 assists.

Jrue Holiday scored 12 of his team-leading 18 points in the first 10 minutes for the 76ers, who lost for the 20th time in 31 games.

QUOTABLE: "This is what team sports is all about. Guys go down and it's always unfortunate, but that gives other guys opportunities that they didn't have before. Right now guys are making the most of it."
-- Magic swingman Quentin Richardson

THE STAT: Playing without injured centers Dwight Howard and Glen Davis, the Magic had a 36-20 rebounding advantage.

QUOTABLE II: "They just hammered us. We said going in that's going to be a real key, rebounding the ball. We didn't rebound it. Ryan Anderson had eight offensive rebounds, I think our three (starting) bigs had 10 defensive rebounds."
-- 76ers coach Doug Collins

TURNING POINT: After making only nine of their first 27 shots, the Magic were down, 27-21, early in the second quarter. Anderson drove for a reverse layup and from that point on, Orlando shot 62 percent overall, including 10-of-14 from 3-point range.

HOT: Anderson shot 11-for-16 and made both of his 3-point shots.

QUOTABLE III: "I haven't been shooting the ball super well the past couple of nights, so I wanted to make sure I got myself going on the offensive boards and just get some easy baskets around the bucket . . . That's something I can get myself active with, something I can control.
-- Magic forward Anderson

NOT: The Sixers shot 50 percent, but an indicator of how "cold" they were at the defensive end was this -- the Magic shot six free throws in the entire game.

GOOD MOVE: Daniel Orton started out of necessity for the Magic at center, but he played limited minutes and stayed out of serious foul trouble.

BAD MOVE: In an attempt to take advantage of the injuries to Howard (back) and Davis (knee), the Sixers went small, starting Elton Brand at center and moving Thaddeus Young into the starting lineup. It helped them get off to a good start, but the final three quarters were a defensive disaster.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Anderson, generally regarded as a finesse player because he leads the NBA in 3-point field goals, has 15 double-digit rebound games this season.

ROOKIE WATCH: Orton got his first career start at center for the Magic, but played fewer minutes (24) than he played Sunday night (29) in the game in which Davis hurt his knee. Orton had six points and six rebounds.

NOTABLE: The last time three Magic players recorded double-doubles in the same game was on Nov. 4, 2009. That time it was Jameer Nelson, Ryan Anderson and Matt Barnes ... Seven Magic players scored in a 40-point second quarter in which they shot 70 percent.

UP NEXT: For the 76ers, Tuesday vs. Indiana, Wednesday vs. Saturday @ Indiana. For the Magic, Wednesday @ Boston, Saturday @ Utah, Sunday @ Denver.

• 76ers: --
• Magic: Howard, Turkoglu

• 76ers: --
• Magic: --

• Lead Changes: 6
• Times Tied: 2

• Arena: Amway Center, Orlando, FL
• Officials: #10 Ron Garretson, #42 Eric Lewis, #44 Eli Roe
• Attendance: 18846
• Duration: 1:53