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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| MAGIC | 33 | 32 | 23 | 25 | 113 |
| BULLS | 17 | 21 | 22 | 34 | 94 |
Recap:
CHICAGO (AP) -- Rashard Lewis set the tone by scoring 16 of his 21 points in the first half and the Orlando Magic rolled over the Chicago Bulls 113-94 Wednesday for their eighth win in nine games.
Hedo Turkoglu added 18 points. Dwight Howard scored 15, and the Southeast division leaders came through with a dominant performance after their seven-game win streak ended in a six-point loss at Detroit on Monday.
Orlando took control as soon as the game started while sending the Bulls to their fourth loss in five games. The Magic led 33-17 after the first quarter, 65-38 at halftime, with Lewis and Howard leading the way.
Lewis hit 6 of 8 shots in the first half, including 2 of 4 3-pointers. And although he cooled off in the second half, he still managed to eclipse the 20-point mark for the third straight game.
While he controlled the perimeter, Howard dominated inside. The NBA's leading rebounder had 14 rebounds and two blocked shots to lift the Magic to an easy win.
The Bulls were coming off a 13-point win at New Jersey, but instead of building on that, they got blown out of their own building. Joakim Noah came through with a season-high 19 points and 11 rebounds. Larry Hughes scored 19 and Ben Gordon 18, but Chicago shot just 42 percent.
Derrick Rose had a rough afternoon finishing with just 11 points and no assists.
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Preview:
The Magic already got one holiday win when they defeated the New Orleans Hornets on Christmas Day. Now they will have another shot at notching a big holiday victory when they head to Chicago to take on the Bulls (14-17) at 2 p.m. Wednesday on New Years Eve.
Orlando notched a big victory against the Bulls back in early November by a score of 96-93. Rashard Lewis and Dwight Howard both recorded double-doubles in that game and scored more than 20 points a piece. It was one of Orlando’s sloppier games of the season, as they turned the ball over 19 times in the game. That has been far from a problem of late with Jameer Nelson playing All-Star-type basketball at the point guard position.
The Bulls are playing better basketball now as well, and their offensive efficiency has definitely increased since the two teams’ first meeting. The Bulls are averaging more than 100.0 ppg. and have seven players scoring more than 8.0 ppg., six of whom are averaging double-figures. Ben Gordon is the top scorer with 21.1 ppg. and rookie Derrick Rose is leading the team in assists with 6.3 per game.
But while their offense is scoring, opponents are scoring even more. The Bulls give up an average of 102.6 ppg., seventh-worst in the NBA. Orlando should be able to score a lot of points against the Bulls from inside the paint and on the perimeter. The fifth-ranked scoring defense of the Magic is what will be the largest factor in trying to put another one in the win column.
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Keys to the game:
Recovery: One thing Orlando hasn't gotten used to this season is losing. They've scored less points than their opponent only seven times this season, one of which happened Monday night in Detroit. The Magic are on the road and are coming off of a loss, so they will need to respond with passion and strong play. When good teams can recover from a loss and prevent a small losing streak from beginning, that is when they are seen as elite squads.
Putting the game away: If the Magic can jump out to a lead early in this game, they will need to put the game away and keep their foot on the gas. When the Bulls visited Orlando on November 3, the Magic were up by 17 at one point and by double-digits with less than four minutes remaining. Still, the Bulls managed to pull within one and bring the game down to the wire. Orlando cannot allow that to happen again, especially with Ben Gordon on the other side of the ball. He is prone to nailing tough shots to win games, and the Magic got lucky when his shot came up short back in November. If this situation comes around again, Orlando might not be so lucky.
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Game Notes:
Dec. 31 @ Chicago: Orlando is 36-35 all-time vs. Chicago (21-14 at home, 15-21 on the road) during the regular season, including 1-0 this season (see recap below)…Orlando went a perfect 4-0 last season against the Bulls…Orlando is 4-6 (2-3 at home, 2-3 at Chicago, 1995 Conference Semifinals, 1996 Conference Finals) during the playoffs…The Magic have won eight of the last 10 regular season meetings overall…Orlando has won four of the last seven match-ups with the Bulls at home, and won the last four outings at Chicago …Magic Senior VP Pat Williams served as Bulls GM from 1969-73…Brian Cook played four seasons at the University of Illinois and attended Lincoln High School in Lincoln, IL…Nov. 3 vs. Chicago - Magic 96, Bulls 93: Dwight Howard recorded 22 points, 15 rebounds and five blocked shots, as Orlando held on for a 96-93 victory over Chicago at Amway Arena. Six players scored in double figures for the Magic. Rashard Lewis tallied 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Jameer Nelson and Keith Bogans each added 13 points. Drew Gooden paced the Bulls with 21 points. Orlando led by as many as 17 points during the second half, and by 11 points with 3:48 left, but could not put Chicago away. Ben Gordon hit a jumper with 23.7 seconds left to trim the Magic lead to 93-92. After Lewis hit one-of-two free throws, the Bulls had a chance to tie, but Gordon’s off-balance jumper was off the mark. The Bulls still would not quit, as Andres Nocioni attempted a three-point shot at the buzzer, but it fell short and the Magic escaped with the win.
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. BULLS: 52 pts., Tracy McGrady (@ Orlando, 2-21-03)
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. MAGIC: 64 pts., Michael Jordan (@ Chicago, 1-16-93)
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