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 The Magic never trailed, took a quick 10-2 lead and hardly looked back and they won their third straight game and sixth in their past seven. They stretched their Southeast Division lead to 9 1/2 games over the Wizards in winning their 40th game, matching their victory total from last season.
Dwight Howard had 20 points and 11 rebounds, but most of his damage was done after the Magic had built a 59-44 halftime lead. Rashard Lewis had 13 of his 17 points in the first half, and Keith Bogans went 5-for-5 in the first half for 12 of his 17 points.
Jameer Nelson had nine points and 10 assists as the Magic picked apart
the Wizards' dreadful attempt at defense with easy backdoor passes and 56
percent shooting. Orlando also scored 56 points in the paint and notched its
biggest margin of victory of the season.
Antawn Jamison scored 19 points for the Wizards, who had won four of five and were trying to get back to .500 for the first time since Feb. 8.
Before the game, both teams discussed the very real possibility of meeting again in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Magic appear destined to earn the conference's No. 3 seed and would draw a matchup with the No. 6 seed
-- where the Wizards have settled in recent weeks.
The Wizards' main consolation from Wednesday's game is that they expect injured stars Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler to return for the postseason. Also, Washington could reasonably expect not to have another game with so many missed layups.
Washington missed more than a half-dozen shots from point-blank range in the first half and shot only 33 percent in the first quarter. The Wizards didn't have a fast-break point or a second-chance point in the first half.
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One sequence at the end of the first quarter described the game better than any other. Washington's Andray Blatche
-- who shot 1-for-10 -- missed a wide-open layup after making a backcourt steal. Teammate Dominic McGuire failed to convert an easy tip-in and was called for basket interference. The Magic then held the ball for the last shot and got a favorable bounce when Carlos Arroyo's 3-pointer went very high off the rim and straight through the net at the buzzer.
Notes: Magic G Keyon Dooling missed his third straight game with sprained left foot. ... Wizards rookie Oleksiy Pecherov scored a career-high 15 points. ... The Wizards reported no setbacks for Arenas one day after his first full-contact practice since knee surgery in November. "He felt great," coach Eddie Jordan said. There remains no timetable for the return of either Arenas or Butler (hip). ... The Verizon Center welcomed its 25 millionth fan to the game. The downtown arena has hosted the Wizards, the NHL's Capitals, the WNBA's Mystics, concerts and numerous other events since opening in 1997.
[Associated Press; By JOSEPH WHITE]
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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