Suns at Magic
The Orlando Magic must recover quickly from a discouraging loss as they host the Phoenix Suns in the second of a back-to-back on Sunday night. The Magic let a double-digit lead get away in a 101-99 defeat at the Miami Heat on Saturday -- their sixth loss in the last seven games. The good news is that inside force Glen Davis returned from a broken foot to score 20 points against Miami and he gives the Magic another weapon to combat a dangerous Suns offense.
Rookie Victor Oladipo is averaging 18.5 points in his first two starts for Orlando, teaming with red-hot Arron Afflalo in the backcourt. Leading scorer Eric Bledsoe has missed his last three games with a bruised shin, but the Suns snapped a four-game losing streak with a 98-91 victory at Charlotte on Friday. Guards Goran Dragic and Gerald Green have stepped up in his absence.
TV: 6 p.m. ET, NBA-TV, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), FSN Florida (Orlando)
ABOUT THE SUNS (6-6): Channing Frye registered a season-high 20 points and Dragic had 14 points and eight assists as the Suns broke out of the doldrums and loosened up against Charlotte. “When you start losing everything you start to get real tight, so we can’t be like that,” Frye told reporters Friday. “We just have to get out there and have fun.” Dragic has especially picked up his game of late, averaging 18.5 points and 7.8 assists over the last four contests while Green is averaging 20 points over the last three.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (4-8): Afflalo leads the team in scoring and has raised his game a couple notches in the last seven games, averaging 24.4 points and shooting 54.5 percent from 3-point range. “He’s trying to set a tone for us,” Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn said of Afflalo on the team’s official website. “Not only is he doing it with actions, but with the way he is carrying himself and producing on the floor.” Magic C Nikola Vucevic looks to rebound after totaling only 17 points the last two games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Orlando has won five straight and seven of the last eight against Phoenix, including a 115-94 triumph at home last November.
2. In the last five quarters of action, Phoenix F P.J. Tucker has scored 29 points while making 10-of-12 from the field – 6-of-7 from 3-point range.
3. The Suns ranked first in the league with an average of 22.5 fast break points.