Magic slip past shorthanded Mavericks
ORLANDO -- The Orlando Magic were struggling to find that last burst of offense to put the shorthanded Dallas Mavericks away. They turned to their veterans to find it.
And it was just enough breathing room for Orlando to hold on for a 95-87 win over Dallas at Amway Center on Saturday.
Jeff Green put an exclamation point on what was an otherwise ugly game, jumping from beyond the edge of the paint to dunk over Andrew Bogut and give the Magic an eight-point lead late in the fourth quarter. Evan Fournier hit a 3-pointer to restore the lead to seven points with less than two minutes to play, holding off one final rally.
The Magic also got a boost from reserve point guard D.J. Augustin. The veteran guard scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, including two 3-pointers to swing the lead in the Magic's favor for good. He also added six assists to help Orlando fight another poor shooting for their second straight win.
Dallas kept pace in an otherwise ugly game. Rookie Jonathan Gibson, playing in just his second game of the season, scored 26 points off the bench, making five of nine 3-pointers. The Mavericks made 11 3-pointers for the game.
But Dallas again struggled to shoot overall. The Mavericks hit on only 33.8 percent of their shots. They did not even record their first field goal until past the midpoint of the first quarter.
Gibson was stellar for the Mavericks, but only one other player shot better than 50 percent for the game. Dallas was unable to turn Orlando's 18 turnovers into much offense.
Harrison Barnes scored 11 points on 3-for-13 shooting. Wesley Matthews and Seth Curry added 13 points apiece.
Orlando shot 43.6 from the floor for the game. The Magic got 13 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks from Bismack Biyombo. Serge Ibaka had 15 points and nine rebounds.
The Mavericks were able to keep things close with forward Dirk Nowitzki and guards J.J. Barea, Deron Williams and Devin Harris out with injuries. But they could not withstand the Magic's last push, scoring just 18 points in the fourth quarter on their way to a fifth straight defeat.
NOTES: F Dirk Nowitzki (Achilles), G. J.J. Barea (calf), G Deron Williams (calf) and G Devin Harris (toe) did not travel with the Mavericks to Orlando. ... The Orlando Magic and Dallas Mavericks came into the game with the two worst field-goal percentages in the league at 40.8 percent and 40.7 percent respectively. ... The Mavericks became the first team this season to shoot worse than 30 percent in a game, shooting 28.8 percent against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. ... F Jeff Green started his fifth game for the Magic on Saturday. He averaged 4.5 points per game and shot 22.2 percent from the floor entering Saturday's game as a starter. Coach Frank Vogel praised his defense and noted the Magic needed his veteran presence and someone who could operate without the ball to free up others in the starting lineup. ... Orlando Magic G Jodie Meeks (foot) returned to practice Friday. A timetable for his return is not set.