Oladipo scores 32, Magic rally to down Rockets, 120-113
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Victor Oladipo had 32 points, Nik Vucevic added 25 and 12 rebounds, and the Orlando Magic rallied to beat the Houston Rockets 120-113 on Wednesday night.
Houston led 85-84 entering the fourth quarter, but was outscored 36-28 by the Magic in the final 12 minutes.
The win was Orlando's second straight, and snapped a four-game Rockets' winning streak. It was the second consecutive 30-point game for Oladipo, who had 33 in the Magic's win at Chicago on Monday.
Elfrid Payton and Channing Frye each added 15 points. Orlando improved to 11-1 this season when scoring 100 points or more.
James Harden had 26 points and 10 assists to lead Houston. Dwight Howard added 23 points and eight rebounds. Howard is now 3-2 against his former team.
The Rockets shot 50 percent for the game, but were just 9 for 20 in the fourth quarter.
The Rockets made an effort to deny Vucevic touches in the fourth quarter, forcing the Magic to look other places for offense.
Meanwhile, Houston pushed the action and took a 107-104 lead on a layup by Donatas Motiejunas.
The Magic quickly responded, with back-to-back baskets by Payton and 3 by Channing Frye to nudge back in front 111-107 with 1:20 to play.
Following a Rockets' basket, Vucevic was finally free underneath for a layup, and was fouled. He converted on his free throw to complete the three-point play to make it 114-109 with less than a minute remaining. Houston called timeout.
Payton forced a steal out of that timeout, and found Oladipo for an uncontested two-handed dunk.
It was a big finish for Payton, who was 1-for 7 from the field entering the final quarter, but was 4-for-4 in fourth with a pair assists.
The Magic began and ended the first half with big scoring spurts.
Orlando jumped out to 16-4 lead, sparked by a pair of quick Channing Frye 3-pointers.
The Rockets settled in and eventually grabbed their largest lead of the half, 47-43, late in the second quarter.
But the Magic picked things up again - this time with a 10-0 run - that included eight straight points by Oladipo to go back in front.
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TIP-INS
Rockets: Outscored the Magic 64-54 on points in the paint. ...Finished with 21 turnovers that led to 26 Magic points.
Magic: Vucevic posted a NBA-leading 24th double-double. ...F Tobias Harris sat out for the third straight game with a sprained left ankle. ...Rookie G Devyn Marble started in his place for the third consecutive time in a three-guard look for Orlando.
UP NEXT
Rockets: Host Thunder on Thursday.
Magic: Host Memphis on Friday.