Magic at Pistons
THE STORY: The Magic avoided an upset bid from the Toronto Raptors
on Sunday, putting up a 32-point fourth-quarter push to win 102-96.
Orlando went on a 20-2 run behind the sharp shooting of Ryan Anderson,
J.J. Redick and Hedo Turkoglu. The three made 10 of the team’s 12
3-pointers and combined for 60 points. The Magic have won four in a row
after losing their opener to Oklahoma City on Christmas Day. The Pistons
picked up their first win of the season, edging Indiana 96-88 on New
Year’s Eve. Detroit had lost its first three games by an average of more
than 12 points, in part to a terrible effort on defense. The Pistons
were able to make up for that with offense, with all five starters
scoring in double figures led by Jonas Jerebko’s 20 points. The Pistons
and Magic have split their last 10 meetings, with Detroit edging Orlando
103-96 in their most recent game on Jan. 24, 2011.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Sun Sports (Orlando), FS Detroit
ABOUT THE MAGIC (4-1):
Anderson is emerging as one of the toughest matchups in the NBA. The
6-foot-10 forward is averaging a team-high 20.4 points and is shooting
46.7 percent from beyond the arc. Anderson leads the NBA with 16 made
3-pointers, shooting 5 for 8 from the perimeter Sunday. He averaged 10.6
points in 2010-11.
ABOUT THE PISTONS (1-3): Jerebko, a
second-year player out of Sweden, is quickly becoming an offensive force
for the Pistons. Before scoring 20 points versus Indiana, the 6-foot-10
forward netted 10 points in a loss to Boston and is averaging 13.8
points. He also grabbed 12 rebounds against the Pacers for his first
double-double of the season. Jerebko missed all of last season with an
Achilles injury. He averaged 9.3 points in 80 games during the 2009-10
season.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Saturday snapped a
20-game losing skid as a head coach for Detroit's Lawrence Frank, going
back to his tenure with the New Jersey Nets.
2. Former Duke star
J.J. Redick is giving Orlando a huge spark off the bench. The shooting
guard is scoring 15 points per game and is hitting 50 percent from
beyond the arc.
3. Monday’s game will be Orlando’s sixth in nine nights.