Nets at Magic
With Brook Lopez back in a starring role and a very impressive win in its pocket, surging Brooklyn is looking as if it wants to make some noise in the Eastern Conference. The Nets look to get back to .500 for the first time since they were 4-4 when they continue a three-game road trip at Orlando on Friday. Lopez made his first start in nearly a month Tuesday, pouring in 29 points to lead his team to an impressive 96-82 win over Chicago, which had won its previous seven.
Brooklyn outclassed Chicago in nearly every department and will have veteran Kevin Garnett back for this one after the big man sat out the second half of a back-to-back against the Bulls. The Magic failed for the fourth time this season to win a third straight game when they dropped a 109-86 decision at home against Detroit on Tuesday. It was the fourth loss in the last five home games for Orlando, which fell 104-96 at Brooklyn on Nov. 9.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, YES (Brooklyn), FSN Florida (Orlando)
ABOUT THE NETS (15-16): Brooklyn has had issues getting consistent production from its second unit this season, as injuries and inconsistency have upset coach Lionel Hollins' rotation. One exception has been reserve Alan Anderson, who made three more 3-pointers in the win over Chicago and is averaging 8.3 points - nearly three more than his season average - over his last 12 games. The veteran has made 39.7 percent of his 3-pointers as a reserve this season, no small feat for a bench unit that ranks 27th in the league while shooting 29.4 percent from beyond the arc.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (13-22): A 23-point loss at home to the Pistons seems pretty bad on the surface, but Orlando was playing its fourth game in five nights and simply could not overcome the fatigue. Head coach Jacque Vaughn is confident that games such as that will be building blocks for his youthful team. "There's a maturity level that we're going to get to in being able to produce four [times] out of four in five nights and be able to be called upon and have whatever energy it takes," he told the Orlando Sentinel. "We'll get there. We'll learn how to do it."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Nets SG Bojan Bogdanovic scored 22 points - tied for his season high - in the first meeting this season.
2. Magic SG Evan Fournier, who is averaging 13.8 points for the season, has a total of 11 on 4-of-13 shooting over his last two games.
3. Orlando averaged 111 points in winning both meetings at home last season.