Hornets 107, Magic 99
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Marvin Williams and Nicolas Batum scored 26 points apiece, and the Charlotte Hornets got back on track with a 107-99 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night.
The Hornets shrugged off a slow start and then took control of the game by outscoring the Magic 35-13 in the second quarter, with an 18-0 run over a five-minute stretch.
The win came two nights after the Hornets (38-29) had a seven-game winning streak snapped by Dallas. Charlotte has now won 14 of its last 17.
The 18-0 run turned a 37-31 deficit into a 49-37 lead, and the Hornets went on to lead 61-43 at halftime. The Hornets pushed the lead to as many as 25 points in the second half.
Williams finished 10 of 21 from the field with four 3-pointers. Batum was 10 of 17 from the field with three 3-pointers, and he also had nine assists and seven rebounds. The Hornets also got 16 points and eight rebounds from Kemba Walker and 13 points and 13 rebounds from Cody Zeller.
The Magic (29-38) were short-handed, with three of their top players out with injuries.
Victor Oladipo led the Magic with 25 points, including 15 in the first quarter when the Magic led by as many as eight. The Magic also got 16 points from Brandon Jennings, 13 from Andrew Nicholson, and 11 from Mario Hezonja. But Evan Fournier, who scored a season-high 30 in a win over Denver on Tuesday, was held to nine.
NOTES: The teams split two previous games this season. The Magic won 113-98 on Dec. 16 and the Hornets won 120-116 in overtime on Jan. 22. The teams meet again in Charlotte on April 13, the final game of the regular season. ... The Magic were without C Nikola Vucevic (strained groin) and F Ersan Ilyasova (sprained knee). ... Magic G Brandon Jennings, acquired from Detroit on Feb. 16, got his second start in place of G Elfrid Payton (sprained elbow). ... The Hornets concluded a seven-game homestand. ... The Magic were coming off a 116-110 win over Denver on Tuesday. They entered the game with a 4-10 record on the second night of back-to-backs. ... The Hornets were No. 6 in the Eastern Conference playoff race but 1 1/2 games behind No. 3 Boston and No. 4 Miami. ... The game featured three members of Connecticut's 2011 national championship team -- Hornets G Kemba Walker, Hornets G Jeremy Lamb and Magic G Shabazz Napier. ... The Hornets play at Miami on Thursday. The Magic return home to face Cleveland on Friday.