Magic 89, Lakers 75
Dwight Howard dominated play with 31 points and 13 rebounds and the Orlando Magic notched a much-needed 89-75 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
Howard made 13 of 16 shots and had three blocks as Orlando (35-21) held Kobe Bryant to four second-half points and pulled away with a strong fourth-quarter performance before a record home crowd of 19,193.
Bryant and Andrew Bynum scored 17 points apiece for the Lakers (38-17), who scored just 15 points in the final quarter.
The victory was Orlando’s first over a team with a winning record since defeating the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 8. The Magic are 10-9 in their last 19 games.
The Lakers trailed by just six points with nine minutes to play before Brandon Bass’ layup started a decisive 10-2 run. Bass and Gilbert Arenas each scored four points during the spurt that gave the Magic an 81-67 lead.
Jason Richardson added 12 points for Orlando, all in the first half.
Lamar Odom added 15 points and eight rebounds for the Lakers. Pau Gasol had just 11 points.
Los Angeles shot just 39.3 percent from the field, including 2 of 16 from 3-point range.
The Lakers are now 4-1 on their seven-game road trip.