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| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | F | |
| MAGIC | 34 | 19 | 20 | 24 | - | 97 |
| CLIPPERS | 24 | 23 | 22 | 17 | - | 86 |
Recap:
LOS ANGELES (NBA.com exclusive) -- The Orlando Magic continued to find comfort away from home, winning their eighth consecutive road game Tuesday night to set a single-season franchise record.
Dwight Howard scored 25 points on his 24th birthday, grabbed 11 rebounds and blocked a season-high seven shots as the Magic also equaled their best start in franchise history with the 97-86 victory against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center.
"Dwight was rolling tonight," said teammate Vince Carter.
The turning point for the Magic (17-4) came late in the third quarter after the Clippers took their last lead 69-68 on a slam dunk by backup center DeAndre Jordan. Orlando then held the Clippers without a field goal over the next 7 � minutes and outscored them 14-2 during that stretch.
"We were good defensively in the second half once we stopped double teaming," said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy. "If you defend, rebound and take care of the ball you're going to have a chance to win."
Howard, a career 60 percent shooter from the foul line, shot 11-for-15 from the stripe, including 4-for-5 in the fourth quarter, to keep the Clippers (9-12) at bay. His double-double was the 15th of the season and 10th in the last 11 games.
"We tried to put Howard on the line but to his credit he made shots," said Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy. "If he was shooting free throws like he normally does, we would have been in the game."
Rashard Lewis scored 17 points for Orlando, which kept pace with Boston atop the Eastern Conference standings, Jason Williams had 16 and Carter added 13.
Los Angeles center Chris Kaman continued to struggle with his shot. He scored 16 points on 8-for-22 shooting against the Magic, leaving him 21-for-59 over the last four games.
"Chris wasn't shooting the ball well from outside, which we were missing," Dunleavy said.
Eric Gordon scored 21 points to lead the Clippers, including 10 in the third quarter when the Clippers took their only leads of the game.
Baron Davis contributed 18 points and 11 assists for Los Angeles, Al Thornton scored 15 points and Rasual Butler added 10 off the bench.
"My focus was working hard and focusing on my shooting," said Gordon, who has been sidelined by groin and hamstring injuries this season. "I tried to get open to give guys an option and just capitalize on all of my opportunities."
Howard looked to be in for a big night right from the start.
Guarded by Kaman, he made all four field goal attempts in the first six minutes, scored 10 points and blocked two of Kaman's shots. Lewis then hit 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions and the Magic owned a double-digit lead seven minutes into the game.
"We gave them room and gave up a lot of 3s that ended up hurting us," Dunleavy said of the opening quarter.
The Magic shot 68.4 percent from the floor in the first 12 minutes, including 6-for-8 on 3-point attempts, but cooled off considerably in the second. They also committed eight turnovers in the second quarter, allowing the Clippers to trim the deficit to six at the half. Van Gundy said the turnovers "is what let them stay in the game."
Thornton sank a 3-point basket midway through the third quarter that sparked a 9-0 run and gave the Clippers their first lead. The teams traded leads five more times in the quarter before the Clippers went cold from the field and missed 11 consecutive field goal attempts. They also turned the ball over four times during the deciding stretch.
"The big difference in the game was shooting ability," Dunleavy said.
Orlando's four-game road trip next takes them to Utah on Thursday, where they can set a franchise record for the best start in the team's 21-year history.
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GAME HIGHLIGHTS:
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Preview:
STATS -- Looking for their best start in 14 years, the Orlando Magic will attempt to set a franchise record with their eighth straight road win in a season.
Orlando can achieve that mark with a sixth consecutive victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night.
The Southeast Division-leading Magic won their fifth straight overall and improved to 16-4 with Saturday's 126-118 victory at Golden State. Orlando used a 15-0 fourth-quarter run to win its seventh in a row on the road since a 102-74 loss to Oklahoma City on Nov. 8.
"We got a little lucky and hung around and stayed in the game until we were able to get the last push that we needed,'' said coach Stan Van Gundy, whose team has won 10 of 11.
Orlando, which looks to open 17-4 for the first time since 1995-96, has not won eight straight away from home since taking its final two road games of 2006-07 and its first seven the following season.
"We like playing on the road and like the atmosphere that the road brings us. It's almost like we're more together on the road,'' center Dwight Howard told the team's official Web site. "We feed off the energy of knowing that we have to go into somebody else's building and quiet that crowd and get the win.''
Orlando won its last two in Los Angeles against the Clippers, the most recent a 95-88 victory last Dec. 8. Howard had 23 points, 22 rebounds and six blocks.
Looking for its first victory over Orlando since Dec. 3, 2006, Los Angeles (9-11) will try for a better effort than it had in an 88-72 win over Indiana on Saturday. The Clippers, winners of four of five at home, shot 34.9 percent from the field, went 4 of 16 from 3-point range and matched a season high with 21 turnovers.
"It was one of the ugliest (games), but I'm definitely not giving it back,'' center Marcus Camby said after scoring 12 points with 17 rebounds. "The way we shot the ball and turned the ball over and still got the win, we've definitely got a lot of improvement to do. But I'm more than happy to get the W.''
Los Angeles was also happy to have second-year guard Eric Gordon back after he missed Wednesday's loss to Houston with a strained left hamstring. He scored 10 points Saturday.
"Obviously Eric's numbers, shooting the ball 3 for 10, were not so great," coach Mike Dunleavy said, "but he has an impact on the game defensively. As far as stops, deflections, hands on the ball, pushing the ball up the floor, making plays to other guys, and the fact that you have to guard him ? it helps spread the court."
Gordon averaged 11.5 points on 36.4 percent shooting in two losses to Orlando last season.
Magic guard Vince Carter had 27 points Saturday as Orlando had its best offensive output since a 135-111 victory over Indiana on Jan. 27.
Playing for New Jersey, Carter averaged 33.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists against Los Angeles in 2008-09.
Orlando hosts the Clippers on March 9.
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Game Notes:
Dec. 8 @ L.A. Clippers: Orlando is 23-17 all-time vs. the L.A. Clippers (14-6 at home, 9-11 on the road) during the regular season…The Magic went 2-0 last season against the Clippers…Orlando has won the last five meetings overall…The Magic have won eight of the last 11 meetings at home, but dropped four of the last six on the road…Ryan Anderson spent two years at the University of California (2006-08)…Matt Barnes played 38 games during his rookie NBA campaign with the Clippers in 2003-04 and spent four years at UCLA (1998-2002)…Jason Williams signed with the Clippers in Aug. of 2008, but never played for the team…Assistant GM Dave Twardzik served as an assistant coach with the Clippers during his career.
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. CLIPPERS: 47 pts., Tracy McGrady (@ Los Angeles, 12-10-01)
BEST ALL-TIME SCORING PERFORMANCE VS. MAGIC: 35 pts., Elton Brand (@ Orlando, 2-1-06)
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