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MickyEyez · 02-27-2008, 12:01 PM

@

Orlando Magic (37-22) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (25-32)

7:00 PM EST, Wachovia Center

Philly 76ers

Miller/Green/Iguodala/Evans/Dalembert

Orlando Magic

Nelson/Evans/Turkoglu/Lewis/Howard

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Quote:

Philadelphia has been one of the NBA's hottest teams in February. That hasn't stopped the Orlando Magic from continuing their success against the 76ers.

The Southeast Division-leading Magic look to beat the 76ers for the third time this month when the teams meet Wednesday night.

At 7-4, Philadelphia (25-32) has one of the league's top records in February and it has helped move it into eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Two of the 76ers' losses this month, however, have come against the Magic (37-22).

Orlando shot 54.1 percent (40-for-74) from the field in a 108-106 win over Philadelphia on Feb. 1, and 51.2 percent (42-for-82) in a 115-99 victory on Friday night. The Magic have won four straight in Philadelphia and four in a row in the series overall.

Orlando enters this contest having won three straight, a stretch that began with its latest win over Philadelphia. The Magic's last victory came Tuesday night, when it beat New Jersey 102-92 behind Hedo Turkoglu's 25 points.

Turkoglu helped Orlando reach 100 points for the ninth straight game, scoring 17 points in the final quarter.

"We have played through him in the fourth quarter because he has proven this year he is a clutch player," Orlando point guard Keyon Dooling said of Turkoglu. "So we ride him in the fourth quarter, because not only can he score, but he can create shots for other people.

"He's a unique player. He's 6-10 and can shoot the ball, handle it, pass it and post up. He's one of the most versatile players in the league and everybody is seeing it now."

Turkoglu is averaging 27.0 points and 6.5 assists in two games versus the 76ers this season. In Friday's contest, Turkoglu had 31 points and seven assists while shooting 7-for-11 from 3-point range.

Dwight Howard has also had two strong games against Philadelphia, averaging 20.5 points and 16.0 rebounds. The fourth-year center is coming off his 50th double-double of the season, finishing with 17 points and 10 rebounds against the Nets.

Howard's matchup with Philadelphia's Samuel Dalembert will be one of the focal points of this contest. Dalembert has been a big part of the 76ers' improvement this season, averaging 10.9 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.4 blocks to give Philadelphia an intimidating presence in the paint.

Dalembert has averaged only 8.0 points this season against Orlando, but also has posted 10.0 rebounds. He was held to eight points against Miami on Saturday night, but had 11 boards and four blocks as Philadelphia won 101-96 in overtime.

Andre Iguodala and Andre Miller both scored 24 points for the 76ers. Iguodala, the team leader with 19.5 points per game, had 25 on Friday.

That loss to Orlando was only Philadelphia's second defeat in its last nine games. After two straight games on the road, the 76ers will try to extend a six-game home winning streak. They are holding opponents to 84.7 points per game in that span.

Philadelphia's last loss at Wachovia Center was on Feb. 1 against Orlando.

GO MAGIC!

MickyEyez · 02-27-2008, 05:24 PM

absolutely SLOPPY start to the game...

37% from the field
3 Assists
10 Turnovers

pathetic half with no ball movement and sloppy passing.

shard is 1-5 to start the game... i'm still waiting for him to have a 113 MILLION dollar game. he's yet to have a 30 point game this season and has only made 10 (or more) FGs made twice and that was during the 4th and 5th game of the season... when will this guy provide some solid offense??? Hedo has outshined Shard doing the same exact things on the court with the addition of passing the ball better.

anyone else growing impatient with Shard?

he's a damn good player, but has yet to earn his money like other max players around the league.

chairman5 · 02-27-2008, 05:28 PM

sad, is it possible for a comeback? thank god for a second half i need dwight to get 70/40 now

MickyEyez · 02-27-2008, 05:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chairman5

sad, is it possible for a comeback? thank god for a second half i need dwight to get 70/40 now

hopefully... a comeback is highly unlikely though IMO.

MickyEyez · 02-27-2008, 09:58 PM

rough game... bell to bell, never sniffed a close game.

can anyone fill me in on what happened to Mo? only 9 min 0-1??

i could only catch the 2nd half and saw no bright spots the entire game.

Babir · 02-28-2008, 02:20 AM

miller destroyed nelson...

MickyEyez · 02-28-2008, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Babir

miller destroyed nelson...

philly destroyed orlando...

it was turnover galore, and EVERYONE wearing a Magic uni was a part of that.

shard didn't show up for the game... hedo didn't control the ball as well as he normally does, shot poorly and the only bright spot he had was getting to the stripe... nelson couldn't control the game... don't even know what happened to Evans... and Howard was mediocre at BEST.

my hat is off to Philly and their sense of urgency in the first half, but even when philly begun to let up in the 2nd half ORLANDO couldn't get it together and create something of a game.

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