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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -The
San Antonio Spurs
refused to let the
Orlando Magic
beat them with long-distance shots.
''We made a decision to make them penetrate,'' Ginobili said. ''We were not going to let Rashard (Lewis), Hedo (Turkoglu)
and Keith (Bogans) take wide-open shots.''
The strategy worked.
Manu Ginobili
scored 28 points and
Michael Finley
added 24 as the Spurs beat the Magic 107-97 on Tuesday night for their fourth straight win.
Dwight Howard
had 24 points and 21 rebounds, his eighth game this season with at least 20 in both categories, but it wasn't enough for Orlando.
Rashard Lewis
added 24,
Keyon Dooling
19 and
Carlos Arroyo
17.
''We missed some opportunities, missed some layups, turned the ball over on fast breaks,'' Lewis said. ''We played good defense,
but we couldn't convert running out.''
Turkoglu didn't have too many chances. He left in the second quarter with a sprained right wrist, and fellow starter
Jameer Nelson
got knocked out of the game with a bruised jaw after apparently running into Howard.
Tim Duncan
had 19 points and 15 rebounds for San Antonio,
Michael Finley
scored 24 points and
Tony Parker
and
Bruce Bowen
each added 11 points. Parker also had nine assists.
Orlando led 69-61 in the third quarter, its largest margin of the game, before a 6-minute scoring drought. It started after
Keith Bogans
missed all three free throws following a foul while shooting a 3, and ended with the Spurs ahead 76-69, then their biggest
lead.
''We hit a little stretch in the third quarter where we couldn't score,'' Dooling said. ''From that point on, they took control
of the game.
Orlando trailed 80-73 entering the fourth quarter, but drew to 87-85 on Lewis' 3. But the Magic scored only two points over
the next 3 minutes - also from Lewis - as the Spurs pulled away.
Ginobili scored 13 in the fourth quarter, half of a guard tandem that burned Orlando for at least 20 apiece in its second
straight loss.
The Spurs, the NBA's second-best team guarding the 3, held the Magic to 7-for-16 shooting behind the arc. Orlando had made
at least 10 3-pointers in the past 10 games.
''We kept them under their season average in points,'' Duncan said. ''We know they have a lot of great shooters.''
Notes: Second-year guard J.J. Redick played 9 minutes, getting rare first-half court time because of Orlando's injuries. He
had two points on 0-of-5 shooting. ...
Brent Barry
wasn't active, a day after re-signing with the Spurs. ... Orlando is the only NBA team that has never won a season series
against the Spurs. San Antonio won the earlier matchup this season 128-110.
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