Howard, Magic hold off Pistons 110-103

Nov 6, 11:50 pm EST

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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)—Dwight Howard(notes) made up for a miserable performance against the Pistons three nights earlier.

Even so, he was still irked by what happened in the fourth quarter.

Howard’s 22 points and 12 rebounds were enough to help the Orlando Magic hold off Charlie Villanueva(notes) and Detroit 110-103 Friday night, but the win was soured by the Pistons’ 35-point fourth quarter.

“We haven’t played good enough defense to be a great team,” Howard said. “We have to try and be great every night, and that’s just not happening yet. Sometimes you have ugly games, and tonight the fourth quarter was ugly, but we still got a good win.”

Villanueva scored 22 of his 28 points in the quarter, but it wasn’t enough to get past the defending Eastern Conference champs, who led by 19 early and never trailed at all.

“Charlie was great. He gave us a chance in the fourth, but you can’t rely on one guy to try and bring you back,” Ben Gordon(notes) said. “We dug ourselves a hole and just couldn’t get over the hump.”

Three nights after fouling out with eight points in 17 minutes, Howard was nearly perfect. He made 7 of 8 field goals and 8 of 9 free throws and didn’t commit a foul until after halftime.

Matt Barnes(notes) had 18 points and nine rebounds for the Magic and Jameer Nelson(notes) also scored 18, with eight assists.

Orlando had lost 20 of 25 regular season games to the Pistons, including one earlier in the week.

The closest Detroit came on Friday night was 96-90 after a shot by Villanueva with about three minutes to play.

Rodney Stuckey(notes) scored 20 points and Gordon finished with 19 for the Pistons.

“We’re not playing smart enough. We didn’t play enough defense and for too many minutes we were just hanging on to win a regular-season game,” coach Stan Van Gundy said. “We aren’t making the push to be great. I don’t know if we will. We’ll have to see.”

NOTES: The Magic were already without Vince Carter(notes) (sprained left ankle) and Rashard Lewis(notes) (10-game suspension) before losing lost starting power forward Ryan Anderson(notes) to a sprained right ankle in the third quarter. … Detroit was without starters Rip Hamilton (right ankle sprain) and Tayshaun Prince(notes) (lower back strain). … The Magic shot 30 of 35 overall from the line. … The Pistons were staying at a downtown hotel less than mile from where a gunman opened fire and killed one person and wounded five others late Friday morning, causing a shutdown of city streets during a search for the assailant. They had to detour returning to the team hotel after the morning practice.

Updated Nov 6, 11:50 pm EST
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Orlando at Milwaukee

Sat Nov 28, 2009, 9:00 pm EST

Detroit vs Atlanta

Sun Nov 29, 2009, 1:00 pm EST

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26 Comments

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  1. Texas_Hurricane
    26. Posted by Texas_Hurricane Sat Nov 7 12:38pm EST

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    This Conference Has No Talented Teams.

    If The Magic Can't Win This Division,I'll Have To Refer To Them As The Cleveland Magic.
  2. BMW
    25. Posted by BMW Sat Nov 7 12:05pm EST

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    MAGIC look pretty good considering they are missing 2 starters! Pistons played very well without 2 starters and with Ben Gordon having a very poor night. Charlie V. had a great game!
  3. Brandon
    24. Posted by Brandon Sat Nov 7 10:30am EST

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    MANNY STFU. how can the clock be ticking on howard and nelson, nelson is 27 and howard is 23, and both are in their prime at young ages. Watch the games and dont just read the box score you fool.
  4. Steven
    23. Posted by Steven Sat Nov 7 10:03am EST

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    whatever it is @#$% called. you should go to disney world with your lovely magic. you could go on the mickey mouse ride and hug stan van gundy for the rest of your life because the magic are going down this year. cavs all the way and also soulija boy will be with you and you would be doing the stupid dance with him after the cavs embarass the magic in the playoffs.
  5. GrannyRed
    22. Posted by GrannyRed Sat Nov 7 9:44am EST

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    Hey, you got that right!!!!Coach K needs to work with players on those free throws. Players need to start practicing on free throws very soon!!!
  6. Paching
    21. Posted by Paching Sat Nov 7 9:17am EST

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    Hey steve, If I were to go to disneyland, I'd be going to california you inbred toothless muthjer@#$%er.I own DISNEYWORLD like my Mgjic own your loser cavs,Get it right
  7. IV
    20. Posted by IV Sat Nov 7 8:58am EST

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    Despinte not liking Howard's game I still have them coming out of the East again. They are deep and very talented. I do think they will miss Turk's inside game a little but are still able to reapeat. Howard is a strange case for me because despite that I'm critical with what I think are lack of skills in him, I cannot deny his stats and have to give him his dues. His gets the job done but my problem is that he does not play like a real center. He should be the one training with the "Dream" not Kob's. Even Shaq had a few finesse move back in the Laker days. Still I expect them to come out of the East, unless Boston has one more in them.
  8. <i>gm32174</i>
    19. Posted by gm32174 Sat Nov 7 7:33am EST

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    Manny... The Magic played without Carter and Lewis so they were also depleted. Watch out when Lewis comes back and if Carter can stay healthy and not turn into Tmac in Houston it looks like a good trade. Barnes and Anderson look solid.
  9. <i>ferrerannee</i>
    18. Posted by ferrerannee Sat Nov 7 5:14am EST

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    what happened to RIP still not playing my god i thought it was just sprained ankle,after playing that first game he run to bad luck and can't play ball because of a sprain, just tape the ankle and play for goodness sake, the piston looks awful,they really need a player to stretch the floor, if only they kept budinger and then they can trade rip, now i think he is too valuable to trade now, again another dumb move, just trade prince and maxiell, at this rate the pistons does not look good the bobcats look better than detroit lol
  10. Manny
    17. Posted by Manny Sat Nov 7 3:58am EST

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    A win is a win, except… when it FEELS like a loss.

    Listen carefully at SVG’s post-game interview; it mirrors my feelings exactly: Orlando again faced a depleted Detroit team; little more than a two-man, plus a bunch of Kindergarten kids. Hardly a match for ANY team in the NBA, much less for a Championship contender. The Magic HAD to beat this Pistons team DECISIVELY; I mean 15 – 20 points MINIMUM! We HAD to send a message, not only to THEM, but to the entire League; that we ARE the true match for the Lakers and the team to beat! Never mind the record; winning by seven is NOT good enough; it feels like a defeat.

    Again, Van Gundy repeated what I’ve been saying for the past two years: Unless the Magic take each and every game SERIOUSLY and play with real intensity, from start to finish, there won’t be ANY Championship, much less a dynasty. And the clock is ticking for Howard and Nelson. It starts with Howard erasing that absurd smile of his at every critical juncture, when the game is on the line; when the other team is embarrassing the Magic. It’s not a time to laugh; it’s time to get mad, show resolve, focus. It’s the stuff of true Champions.

    Like Van Gundy, I truly wonder if the Magic players will ever get it.
  11. <i>cheffa22</i>
    16. Posted by cheffa22 Sat Nov 7 3:07am EST

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    Good to see Pistons giving court time Jerebko and Daye, they can't be any worse than Wilcox or Brown.
  12. Magician44
    15. Posted by Magician44 Sat Nov 7 1:58am EST

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    Feels good to see them win against Detroit for once.
  13. John P
    14. Posted by John P Sat Nov 7 1:12am EST

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    "A bad shooting day for the Magic and a lot of help from the refs was what did in that game, this is the rematch, lets leave the resuslts to speak for themselves."

    When I looked at the free throws attempted I knew it wasn't in my head, Orlando 5 and Detroit 28
  14. John P
    13. Posted by John P Sat Nov 7 1:08am EST

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    "8.) hey paching are you in love with the magic ? you should go disneyland with them . "

    Disneyland is in California retard.
  15. I see Socialist People
    12. Posted by I see Socialist People Sat Nov 7 12:37am EST

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    Post 9 You use being down by 19 and claim they were tired from trying to catch up. Do you know how ignorant that sounds? Who's fault was it they were down by 19, theirs, they were losing. Let me correct that, they lost.
  16. robert
    11. Posted by robert Sat Nov 7 12:17am EST

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    Clearly Pistons need a legit center,obviously Wallace doesn't have the same legs of 2004-05 season,he's good as a back up center,while Brown and Wilcox should be traded asap !
  17. Maxwell
    10. Posted by Maxwell Fri Nov 6 11:32pm EST

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    ---------------------------------------

    when vc back to the court ???
  18. <i>jtrice60</i>
    9. Posted by jtrice60 Fri Nov 6 11:03pm EST

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    The Pistons would have beaten Orland tonite if they would have capitalized on their free throws. They had the game won by the free throws they missed. Also they were down 19 points and had to use a lot of energy to catch up with them. I was proud of our rookies and given ample time they will be good. I don't know what everyone is talking about because our rookies are pretty good. Daye reminds me of Tay when he first got to play. Jonas has a lot of energy and will be good. When Rip and Tay get back I hope they won't be traded but if they do this it will be another Chauncey Billips error and we will fall apart , because the rookies need some guidance at least this year for sure. But all together I like what I have seen so far. Will Bynum is awesome and should get paid right now and try to sign him next year or we will lose a great point guard. He has a lot of heart and we need him on our team. Sign him to a big contract or we will be sorry. Our team is young but I like them.
  19. Steven
    8. Posted by Steven Fri Nov 6 10:58pm EST

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    hey paching are you in love with the magic ? you should go disneyland with them .
  20. nb2007
    7. Posted by nb2007 Fri Nov 6 6:07pm EST

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    Sad thing is, you people have to gloat about one win for whatever reason, whether it is to feed your ego or otherwise dejected and pathetic lives. The pistons used to be so boss and then Dumars went and F***ed it all up. Clearly, the Magic are heaps and bound above unworthy foes like us to say the least. Every dog has its day, so although i celebrated a win against one of the top 2 teams in the league with fervor it did nothing to the Magic or the Pistons and i came back down to earth. Chalk it up to the Magic beating themselves up, thats really the only way they'll lose. Orlando OWNS anyone. now child please.. lets all deal with it.
  21. Eric L
    6. Posted by Eric L Fri Nov 6 5:14pm EST

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    Sad thing is, even when my Pistons are an average team like they are this year, they still OWN Orlando. We could be a 20 win team and beat the Magic 3 out of 4 during the year. Tell Dwight to stop being so soft when he plays Detroit/
  22. Leo
    5. Posted by Leo Fri Nov 6 4:02pm EST

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    I think Orlando will win tonight. Stand Van should figure out how to defend those Detroit Piston small guard combination. This game will depend if Howard able to stay out the foul trouble, shot the free throw, get the Offensive Rebound, do little low post game. The rest of the offense will done by other players. For defense it will not only Howard show, but also I look closely if Matte Barns can provide some nice defensive play. I am not worrying about their 3's tonight. Therefore, the Magic have 80% chance to win
  23. Gaerdog
    4. Posted by Gaerdog Fri Nov 6 1:57pm EST

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    I agree with Chadly - someone (Becker?) needs to update the "Notes" section, this information from way back in April is ridiculous! (Not to mention perhaps a little insulting to the memory of Coach Daly.)
  24. Paching
    3. Posted by Paching Fri Nov 6 11:50am EST

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    A bad shooting day for the Magic and a lot of help from the refs was what did in that game, this is the rematch, lets leave the resuslts to speak for themselves.
  25. tony s
    2. Posted by tony s Fri Nov 6 9:43am EST

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    Wow, a possible lottery team, who is coached by a guy who used to be an assistant for the cav's, beat the power house magic. go piston's

    now, on the other hand, what does that say about the guy coaching the cav's right now, yes, loser! go piston's
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Top Performers

 Top Performers
 Detroit
C. Villanueva Charlie Villanueva
11-17,  28 Pts
5 Rebs, 0 Assists
 Orlando
D. Howard Dwight Howard
7-8,  22 Pts
12 Rebs, 3 Assists

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