Vucevic, Gordon lead Magic past Heat
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Nikola Vucevic scored 25 points and Aaron Gordan added 21, leading the Orlando Magic to a 110-99 victory over the Miami Heat Friday night at the Amway Center.
The Magic (23-39) beat the Heat (28-34) for the third time, winning the season series for the first time since 2008-09. The Magic took control early and never lost the lead. The Heat never got closer than six points in the fourth quarter.
Elfrid Payton had 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Magic. Evan Fournier had 11 points. Terrence Ross had 10 points.
Reserve James Johnson led the Heat with 19 points and six assists. Center Hassan Whiteside had 15 points and a game-high 18 rebounds. Wayne Ellington had 14 points. Goran Dragic had 15 points, but hit only 3 of 14 shots. Dion Waiter made only 1 of 11 shots in 19 minutes.
Orlando guard D.J. Augustin hit a pair of 3-pointers to open the fourth. Jeff Green followed with a pair of baskets, giving the Magic a 95-79 lead.
The Heat countered with an 8-0 run. Dragic hit a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 97-91, but that was as close as the Heat could get.
The Heat closed the third period with a 7-0 run but still trailed 85-73. Vucevic had 12 points in the quarter as the Magic led by as many as 19 points.
Gordon sparked the Magic's early surge by scoring 17 points and grabbing nine rebounds before intermission. The Magic led 60-53 at halftime. Vucevic had nine points and six rebounds in the first quarter when the Magic led by as many as 14 points.
Rodney McGruder hit a pair of 3-pointers late in the first half and cut the deficit to 55-53. Gordon, though, scored the last five points of the second quarter to open the halftime lead.
The Magic made only 1 of 9 3-pointers in the first half, but still shot 53.3 percent (24 of 45) from the field in the first two periods when they held a 25-20 rebound advantage.
NOTES: Tired of so much losing this season, Magic coach Frank Vogel blasted his own organization before the game. "This organization needs to learn how to win," he said. "These players need to learn how to win. I've had success, and some of our players have had success elsewhere, but we haven't had it here." . . . The schedule gets tougher quickly for the Heat, who are home Saturday night against the defending NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers. They then travel to Cleveland to play the Cavs on Monday. The Heat have won 11 consecutive games against the Cavs in Miami. . . . Magic PG C.J. Watson returned to action Friday night after missing the previous three games with a sore right Achilles. . . . The Magic and Heat celebrated Noche Latina Night Friday in honor of their many Latin fans. Salsa singer Jerry Rivera performed after the game. . . . The Magic had beaten the Heat in two of their previous three meetings this season. . . .The Heat are still the only team in the NBA with eight players averaging at least 10 points.