National Basketball Association
New York 80, Orlando 79
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, April 11, 2015
Where: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Officials:
#35 Kane Fitzgerald, #33 Sean Corbin, #12 Violet Palmer
Attendance:
17207
By The Sports Xchange
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Guard Tim Hardaway Jr. scored seven points in the final 1:10 to spark the New York Knicks to an 80-79 victory over the Orlando Magic Saturday night at the Amway Center.
Hardaway, who finished with 13 points and four assists, broke a tie at 77 with his game-winning 3-point basket with 12.6 seconds remaining.
The Knicks (16-64) won for just the second time in the last 13 games.
Unheralded center Cole Aldrich had a career high 19 points and 14 rebounds. Forward Lou Amundson had 11 points and six rebounds. Forward Tim Smith had 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Guard Langston Galloway and forward Quincy Acy each had nine points.
The Magic were led by guard Victor Oladipo's 21 points. Forward Tobias Harris had 15 points and five rebounds. Center Nikola Vucevic, who scored the final basket with .9 remaining, had 12 points and 13 rebounds. Reserve Willie Green scored 11 points to spark the Magic in the fourth.
Neither team shot well. The Knicks made just 31 of 82 shots (37.8 percent). The Magic made only 30 of 84 shots (35.7 percent).
Hardaway tied the game at 75 with a jumper with 1:10 remaining. He hit a pair of free throws with 41 seconds remaining for the 77-75 lead. He followed with his game-winning 3-pointer.
The Magic grabbed a 69-68 lead -- their first lead since early in the game -- when Green hit his third 3-pointer of the period with 5:03 remaining, capping a 19-4 run. They opened a 73-70 lead on a basket by Oladipo. Aldrich tied the game at 73 with a 3-point play with 3:02 remaining.
The Knicks led 64-50 early in the fourth when Acy opened with a 3-pointer. The Magic, though, scored the next nine points, including five by Green.
Galloway, who was scoreless in the first half, sparked the Knicks in the third period with nine points.
The Knicks led 38-31 at halftime.
New York outscored Orlando 8-7 in the second period as the two teams set an NBA futility record for fewest total points (15) in a quarter.
The Knicks started strong, opening a 30-24 lead in the first quarter when Aldrich had 14 points and seven rebounds in the game's first nine minutes. The Knicks led by as many as 10 points early.
Aldrich had 16 points and 10 rebounds by halftime. Oladipo had 13 points four rebounds.
NOTES: Knicks coach Derek Fisher sang the praises of rookie G Langston Galloway and third-year F Lance Thomas, who combined for 36 points Friday in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks. "They've changed our team. They have changed our culture," Fisher said. ... Knicks C Andrea Bargnani missed his second consecutive game -- and did not make the trip to Orlando -- with an undisclosed illness. Cole Aldrich replaced Bargnani in the starting lineup and scored 14 of the Knicks' first 24 points. ... In the three previous meetings between the two teams, Magic C Nikola Vucevic averaged 27.3 points and 16.3 rebounds. ... Although Magic F Aaron Gordon (No. 4 pick in the 2014 draft) has had a rough rookie season, playing in just his 45th game, he has impressed coach James Borrego with his talent and work ethic. "He has winning DNA, and it's hard to take a kid like that off the floor," Borrego said. "He is a main core piece of our puzzle. We have a special player here."
Top Game Performances
New York |
|
Orlando |
Cole Aldrich 19 |
Scoring |
Victor Oladipo 21 |
Jason Smith 6 |
Assists |
Elfrid Payton 9 |
Cole Aldrich 14 |
Rebounds |
Nikola Vucevic 13 |
Cole Aldrich 3 |
Free Throws Made |
Tobias Harris 4 |
Cole Aldrich 1 |
Steals |
Aaron Gordon 2 |
Jason Smith 4 |
Blocks |
Dewayne Dedmon 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
New York
|
80 |
37.8 |
6-20 |
12-13 |
22 |
46 |
6 |
3 |
15 |
Orlando
|
79 |
35.7 |
6-22 |
13-18 |
15 |
49 |
4 |
10 |
15 |
Upcoming Games
-
Orlando will play their next game on the road against Miami. The Magic have a W/L % of .400 after a win and .273 after a loss.
-
New York will play their next game on the road against Atlanta. The Knicks have a W/L % of .267 after a win and .185 after a loss.