(Sports Network) - The Orlando Magic hope to continue their strong play of
late Wednesday night when they host the woeful Washington Wizards at Amway
Center.
The Magic have won three in a row, including home victories over the Golden
State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves. The win over Minnesota came Monday
night and the offense was solid.
For the second game in a row, the Magic crossed the 100-point mark in their
102-93 win. Glen Davis led the way with 28 points on 13-for-17 shooting.
"It felt really good, and that was me just letting out a lot of frustration,"
said Davis, who scored 20 of his 28 points in the second half. "I was wishing
the game could keep going. I was frustrated in that first half. Luckily, I put
together a half that helped us win."
J.J. Redick chipped in 18 points off the bench and Nikola Vucevic registered a
double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Jameer Nelson handed out 12
assists.
Orlando has struggled offensively this season, despite the last two games.
They rank 25th in scoring, but the defense has been solid. The Magic are
eighth in the NBA in opponents' scoring and haven't allowed 100 points since
their great victory Dec. 2 in Los Angeles over the Lakers.
The Wizards continue to struggle, the losers of four straight after a 100-95
setback at home Tuesday night, in overtime, to the Atlanta Hawks.
"I can't fault our effort," Wizards head coach Randy Wittman said. "It just
boiled down to making a play down the stretch."
Jordan Crawford recorded the second triple-double of his career with 27
points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. Nene had 18 points and rookie guard
Bradley Beal continued his good run of late with 17 points, although it came
on 8-for-22 shooting. Beal has gone for double-figures in eight of his last
nine.
The Wizards rank last in the NBA in scoring at 90.05 ppg. They've scored over
100 points only four times this season and the last came in their surprising
win over the Miami Heat on Dec. 4.
But there could be good news on the horizon. John Wall, the cornerstone of the
franchise, was given the go-ahead to "ramp up" physical activity, although he
can't quite yet. He has to wait until swelling goes down after an injection on
Friday.
"It takes a couple of days," said Wall. "I'm still waiting to see how it's
going to feel."
The Magic have won nine of the last 10 against the Wizards and Washington is
winless in its last five in Orlando.
The Sports Network