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Magic tops depleted Sonics

 
Published Feb. 25, 2006|Updated Feb. 25, 2006

Some of the newest members of the Magic made a good first impression on their hometown fans.

Carlos Arroyo and Darko Millicic provided strong support for stars Dwight Howard and Grant Hill in Orlando's 102-89 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics on Friday night that snapped an eight-game losing streak.

Howard had 23 points and 16 rebounds and Hill had 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting, but it was Arroyo and Millicic, the second pick in the 2003 draft, who lifted the Magic out of its latest slump.

Playing in Magic uniforms in front of their home fans for the first time since being acquired from Detroit a week ago, Arroyo had a season-high 18 points and four assists and Millicic had eight points and five rebounds in 22 minutes, all season highs.

"I thought Carlos and Darko both executed our offense well and made no mistakes as far as where they were supposed to be on the floor," coach Brian Hill said. "Carlos is experienced enough that he's going to get the ball to the right people and I was very pleased with Darko. He has a really good feel for the game."

Damien Wilkins led Seattle with 21 points and Chris Wilcox had a season-high 20. Rashard Lewis added 14 for the Sonics, who used just seven players. Rick Brunson and Mikki Moore, who had played a total of three games between them this season, were the Sonics' only available substitutes.

Also, as expected, Orlando waived guard Penny Hardaway, two days after the team acquired his hefty contract from New York, and re-signed Bo Outlaw.

WIZARDS 102, CAVALIERS 94: Gilbert Arenas scored 26 points, and visiting Washington shut down LeBron James in the second half to beat Cleveland. James finished with 25 points, but went 0-for-8 from the field and 4-for-12 from the foul line in the second half as Cleveland dropped its second straight after winning three in a row.

NUGGETS 102, TIMBERWOLVES 101 (OT): Carmelo Anthony scored 30, including the winning 3-pointer with 3.4 seconds left in overtime, to lift visiting Denver. Andre Miller had 19 points and 13 assists for Denver, which has won four of five.

NETS 94, KNICKS 90: New York allowed the first 10 points, trailed the rest of the way, and was frequently booed during the second half of a loss to New Jersey. Steve Francis, acquired from Orlando on Wednesday, started and scored 16 in 32 minutes for the Knicks.

HAWKS 117, PACERS 112 (OT): Joe Johnson matched his career high with 40 points, including a 3-pointer that sent the game into overtime, as visiting Atlanta beat Indiana for the third time in three games this season. Johnson also had 13 assists. Peja Stojakovic led the Pacers with a season-high 34 points.

SPURS 83, GRIZZLIES 80: Tim Duncan scored 19 and had 16 rebounds as visiting San Antonio held off Memphis. Pau Gasol led the Grizzlies with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Memphis committed a season-high 24 turnovers.

PISTONS 95, BULLS 87: Chauncey Billups scored 17 and Antonio McDyess tied a season high with 16 to lift visiting Detroit. Detroit's Richard Hamilton scored 14 before being ejected for picking up his second technical midway through the fourth quarter, after throwing an elbow toward Kirk Hinrich.

76ERS 116, BUCKS 111: Kyle Korver scored a career-high 31 and Allen Iverson added 30, passing Julius Erving on the league's career scoring list, for visiting Philadelphia. Chris Webber scored 19 and Andre Iguodala added 13 for the 76ers.

ROCKETS 91, WARRIORS 88: Yao Ming and Juwan Howard each scored 22 as Houston won for the first time this season without Tracy McGrady. McGrady was not with the team because of a death in his family.

CELTICS 102, TRAIL BLAZERS 96: Paul Pierce scored 37 and Wally Szczerbiak added 25 as visiting Boston beat short-handed Portland, which dressed just nine players. Ryan Gomes added 13 points and a season-high 17 rebounds for the Celtics, and rookie Martell Webster had 17 of his season-high 24 in the first half to lead the Blazers.

CAVALIERS: Cleveland signed guard Stephen Graham for the rest of the season and waived recently acquired forward Lee Nailon.

PACERS: Center David Harrison was suspended for one game without pay by the NBA for swearing at fans Thursday night in Detroit.

WIZARDS: Billy Thomas, averaging 16.5 points and 4.3 rebounds with Sioux Falls of the CBA, signed a 10-day contract with Washington.