Nets Squander Big Third Quarter In Loss To Orlando Magic
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Gordon scored a career-high 41 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 35 seconds remaining, and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Orlando Magic to a 125-121 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.
Evan Fournier added 28 points in game that went back and forth late in the fourth quarter. He finished the scoring with two free throws with 15.5 seconds to play.
D'Angelo Russell scored 27 points for the Nets, while DeMarre Carroll had 19 and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson 18.
The Magic trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half, but Gordon and Fournier led Orlando on an impressive comeback down the stretch to follow their win over Cleveland with another victory. Orlando fought through a six-point deficit during the final five minutes as Gordon, Fournier and Nikola Vucevic began to attack the paint.
The Nets broke away from a 61-all tie at halftime, with Carroll hitting a couple of 3-pointers to help Brooklyn extend its lead to 12 points. But Gordon, who sat out with an injury when the Nets beat Orlando in Brooklyn last week, and Fournier responded in the final three minutes of the third quarter to pull the Magic to 96-87 going into the fourth quarter.
TIP-INS
Nets: Russell made his first four 3-pointers in the opening five minutes of the opening quarter. Russell finished the first half with 15 points after cooling off the remainder of the half. ... The Nets outscored Orlando 9-4 on second-chance points and 12-6 on fast-break points during the first two quarters.
Magic: Point guard Elfrid Payton missed his second straight game with a hamstring strain. Coach Frank Vogel said he is unsure when Payton will be ready to go. ... Vucevic, who had been the Magic's most consistent player in their first three games, got off to a slow start. He was 3 for 10 from the field and 0 for 3 from 3-point range to finish the first half with just six points. ... Gordon scored a game-high 24 points in the first half on 9-of-11 shooting from the field and 3-for-3 beyond the 3-point arc. Gordon also had seven rebounds during the first two quarters.
UP NEXT
Nets: Host Cleveland on Wednesday night.
Magic: Hosts San Antonio on Friday night.
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