Sports

Vucevic Has 24 Points To Lift Magic Over Nets

February 2, 2019 / 10:02 PM EST / CBS New York

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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Nikola Vucevic had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Evan Fournier added 16 points and the Orlando Magic beat the Brooklyn Nets 102-89 on Saturday night.

Aaron Gordon added 15 points for Orlando, which won its second straight. Jonathan Isaac had 10 points and 12 rebounds, and D.J. Augustin added 12 points and eight assists.

D'Angelo Russell had 23 points for Brooklyn, which has lost three of four. Shabazz Napier had 15 points and Ed Davis was the only other Net in double figures with 11.

Vucevic scored 12 points in the fourth quarter when Orlando found some rhythm offensively. The Magic took a 78-70 lead into the final period and stretched it to 89-79 after Vucevic final got free inside for six straight points and that was enough against an offensively challenged Brooklyn team.

The Nets shot 7 for 24 (29 percent) in the fourth quarter, continuing a game-long shooting slump that stretched from missed layups on drives to the basket to the 3-point arc, where they were 10 of 38 (26.3 percent).

Augustin briefly ignited a struggling Magic offense in the middle of the third quarter, scoring eight points in a 17-3 run that gave Orlando a 71-61 advantage. Orlando couldn't hit anything from the perimeter and Brooklyn was surrounding Vucevic any time he got the ball in the paint, but the Magic center got free in the final period.

However, the Nets were having their own problems offensively. Though Russell had 20 points in the first three periods, he also had five turnovers. The Nets turned the ball over 15 times in the first three periods and never got their 3-point shooting percentage above 30 percent in the game.

Neither team had much going in the first half, when turnovers and poor shooting by both sides produced long stretches of no scoring. The teams combined for 15 turnovers and 35.7 percent shooting.

The Nets trailed by 13 in the first quarter, but back-to-back 3-pointers by Napier in the final 20 seconds gave them a 48-44 halftime lead.

TIP-INS

Nets: Napier was bleeding after catching an elbow in the head from Vucevic late in the third quarter. He returned early in the fourth. . Nets bench outscored Orlando's 46-25. That has happened a league-high 46 times. . Brooklyn averaged 115 points in January, the second-highest monthly scoring average in team history.

Magic: Backup C Mo Bamba missed the game with a sore left leg. . F Terrence Ross, who had 30 points in his last game, had only seven against Brooklyn. He has only scored 20 or more points in back-to-back games twice in his career.

UP NEXT:

Nets: Host Milwaukee Monday

Magic: Play at Oklahoma City on Tuesday.