+5
The Miami Heat made way to the Amway Center to take on the Orlando Magic and left with a 102-89 defeat thanks to Dwight Howard and Ryan Anderson.
The visiting Miami Heat trail a scorching Ryan Anderson and his Orlando Magic 53-50 at halftime of Wednesday night's game. Anderson has 24 points at the half and has made a blistering 5 of 6 clip from 3-point range.
Dwyane Wade (22) and LeBron James (15) have combined for 37 points on an efficient 16 of 23 shot attempts. Nonetheless, they have been unable to cool the Magic's outside shooting and energy on the offensive glass. The Magic have made a combined 9 3-point shots in the half and have notched 11 offensive rebounds.
Early in the first period, the Heat employed 2nd year center Dexter Pittman to try and halt Dwight Howard's prowess in the paint-- Howard has a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds. The strategy largely proved ineffective as Howard drew three quick fouls on Pittman in just four minutes of play.
Chris Bosh has had an eerily quiet night thus far, with just 4 points and 3 rebounds. The Heat are going to need more productivity in the second half from their front court (Udonis Haslem has 0 points and just 2 rebounds) to pull out the victory in the second half.
Tonight the in-state rivals meet for the first of four games this season. Last season, the two split the series, with each team going 1-1 on their own home court.
Injury Report:
Miami is reporting injury free
Starting Lineup:
Point Guard - Mario Chalmers
Shooting Guard - Dwyane Wade
Small Forward - LeBron James
Power Forward - Chris Bosh
Center - Joel Anthony
Injury Report:
The Magic is also reporting no injuries
Starting Lineup:
Point Guard - Jameer Nelson
Shooting Guard - Jason Richardson
Small Forward - Hedo Turkoglu
Power Forward - Ryan Anderson
Center - Dwight Howard
Miami is on a three game winning streak, and has won eight of their last nine and 11 of their last 13. After starting the season 10-3, Orlando has won only five of their last 12 contests, dropping to sixth in the Eastern Conference. A win against the high flying Heat lineup may be just what the doctor ordered, although Miami won't go down easy. The all-time series is pretty much even, with the Heat just barely on top at 45-42. Tune in, tip off is at 7:00 ET.
Common Thread:
Heat forward Juwan Howard played 81 games during the 2003-04 season with the Magic. He averaged 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists in 35 minutes per game.
Heat forward Mike Miller spent 194 gamers over his first three NBA seasons with the Magic, averaging 14 points, five rebounds and three assists in 33 minutes per game.
Magic guard Quentin Richardson played 76 games for Miami in 2009-10, averaging nine points and five rebounds in 27 minutes per game.
Team Milestones:
Heat:
With two more field goals, LeBron James will pass Sherman Douglas into 16th with 1,012. Two more assists will move him past Dan Majerle into 15th with 718. 29 points will move him into 14th, past Jamal Mashburn with 2,836.
James Jones needs four more three pointers to move past James Posey into 13th all-time, with 215.
One more block and Udonis Haslem will pass Brian Grant into 11th, with 185.
Magic:
JJ Reddick plays in his 307th game tonight, passing Tony Battie into 14th. With one point he will pass Anthony Bowie into 19th, with 2,432.
Jameer Nelson needs 11 more free throws to move into ninth on the all-time list, past Donald Royal with 873.
Hedo Turkoglu sits in 19th all-time with 124 blocks. Andrew Declercq has 125, and Rashard Lewis has 127.
Team Leaders:
Heat:
PPG:
LeBron James - 29.0
Dwyane Wade - 21.3
Chris Bosh - 19.5
RPG:
LeBron James - 8.3
Udonis Haslem - 8.2
Chris Bosh - 7.8
APG:
LeBron James - 6.8
Dwyane Wade - 5.3
Mario Chalmers - 3.9
SPG:
Dwyane Wade - 1.9
LeBron James - 1.7
Mario Chalmers - 1.4
BPG:
Dwyane Wade - 1.4
Joel Anthony - 1.0
Chris Bosh - 0.8
Magic:
PPG:
Dwight Howard - 20.9
Ryan Anderson - 16.0
Hedo Turkoglu - 11.8
RPG:
Dwight Howard - 15.1
Ryan Anderson - 7.3
Glen Davis - 5.0
APG:
Jameer Nelson - 5.5
Hedo Turkoglu - 4.6
Chris Duhon - 2.8
SPG:
Dwight Howard - 1.5
Jason RIchardson - 0.9
Hedo Turkoglu - 0.8
BPG:
Dwight Howard - 2.2
Earl Clark - 0.8
The Orlando Magic will be taking on their intra-state rival Miami Heat on Wednesday night at the Amway Center in what has become a pretty big rivalry for the two teams over the past few years. The Heat enter the game with one of the best records in the NBA at 19-6. The Magic aren't so far behind, with just a 15-10 record.
Here is all the information you need to find the game tonight on whichever medium you choose.
Game Date/Time: Wednesday, February 8, 7 p.m. ET Location: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida TV: Magic: FS Florida Heat: Sun Sports Radio: Heat: 790 AM Magic: 580 AM We'll have plenty more on this game throughout the day on SB Nation Tampa Bay, so keep it locked to this StoryStream. For more on Miami you can head over to SB Nation's Heat blog Pennisula is Mightier. For more on the Magic please head over to Orlando Pinstriped Post.
The Miami Heat visit the Orlando Magic at the Amway Center in Orlando tonight. This is the first of four contests to be played between the two clubs this season, and the first of two in Orlando. Miami is starting a six game road trip. After tonight's game, they go on to face the Washington Wizards, the Atlanta Hawks, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Indiana Pacers before finishing up against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Orlando is playing the second game of a three game homestand. They dropped a 107-102 overtime affair to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday, and go on to host the Atlanta Hawks on Friday. Orlando has an 8-5 home record, Miami is 7-4 on the road.
These teams last played in Miami on March 3rd, 2011. Jason Richardson led the Magic with 24 points, and Dwight Howard scored 14 with 18 rebounds. Jameer Nelson added 16 with seven assists. The Heat were paced by LeBron James 29 points with six rebounds and by Dwyane Wade with 28 points, five assists and four steals. Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was quoted after the game, according to NBA.COM,
"We're being measured right now. We just need to keep pushing through. There's no other way to say it. The guys really wanted this one. For most of the game, we played hard enough to get it done and then the tide turned."
Orlando Magic vs Miami Heat Full Highlights 3/3/2011 (via NBAIntelligence)
Miami is coming off a 107-91 home victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers last night. Dwyane Wade led the Heat with 26 points, six assists and three steals. LeBron James scored 24 points with six assists and five rebounds, Chris Bosh scored 15 with nine rebounds, and Udonis Haslem pitched in with 14 points and eight boards. The Cavs were paced by Antawn Jamison's 25 points and nine rebounds, Anderson Varejao scored 11 points with 11 boards, and Kyrie Irving had 16 points, six rebounds and six assists.
The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Magic in Orlando on Monday night, 107-102 in overtime. For the Magic, Dwight Howard scored 33 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, Jameer Nelson had 15 points with 12 assists, and Jason Richardson added 20 in the losing effort. Chris Paul led the Clippers, scoring 29 points, dishing out eight assists and grabbing seven rebounds. Blake Griffin scored 18 with 10 rebounds, and Chauncey Billups also added 18 in the Clippers road victory. Griffin spoke with the media after the game, according to NBA.COM,
"We are in the middle of a six-game road trip. To start 2-0 and get a win like that against a good team like that is good for us and good for our confidence."
NBA CIRCLE - LA Clippers Vs Orlando Magic Highlights Feb 06, 2012 Game Recap (via NBACIRCLE)
Standings:
Miami Heat: 19-6, first in the Southeast Division, second in the Eastern Conference, third in the NBA. on pace for a 50-16 record. Last five games: W-L-W-W-W
Orlando Magic: 15-10, third in the Southeast Division, sixth in the Eastern Conference, tied for ninth in the NBA, on pace for a 40-26 record. Last five games: L-W-W-W-L
Season Series: 0-0
All-Time Series: Miami, 45-42
Gametime: 7:00 ET
OpenCalais - Powered by Thomson Reuters
•
Odds Shark 
Photographs by
cstreet.us,
thelastminute,
turtlemom nancy ,
fesek,
kthypryn,
justinwright,
sue_elias,
pointnshoot,
and
scrapstothefuture
used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.
Behind Dwight's Monster Night, Magic Defeat the Miami Heat 102-89
Hours after Magic owner Richard Devos addressed the team in the locker room, resoundingly stating that he did not want to trade Dwight Howard, the Magic looked for their first signature win of the season. And they got it. The Magic, behind a monster game by Howard, defeated the Miami Heat 102-89 Wednesday night.
Amid season long trade rumors, Howard had a double-double of 25 points and 24 rebounds and along with 24 first-half points from Ryan Anderson, led the Orlando Magic. In fact, the Magic never trailed in the game.
The Heat were led by a valiant effort by Dwyane Wade, who attacked the rim with a vengeance. He led all scorers with 33 points on 15 of 24 shooting. LeBron James contributed 17 points and 10 assists but never really got into the flow of the offense.
For most of the night, the Magic's three-point shots were falling with precision and consistency. When the Howard wasn't abusing Miami's lack of front-court, he would be kicking it out to open long distance shooters. The Magic finished with 17 three-point shots and out-rebounded the Heat by 10.
During a crucial 4th quarter stretch, the Heat employed their playoff lineup of Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem along with the Big 3. But this combination left a gaping whole in the middle. With Howard terrorizing Chris Bosh in the paint, the Magic pulled away for the last time.
Impressed By: Dwyane Wade. Despite Howard's presence in the middle, Dwyane attacked fearlessly; his scoring kept the score close enough for the Heat to be in the game in the 4th quarter.
Depressed By: Chris Bosh. Chris finished the night with 12 points and 9 rebounds. His shot wasn't falling, he was too tentative around the basket, he didn't contribute much defense to Ryan Anderson's scoring outburst. Whether the presence of Howard disrupted his game is undeniable, but if Bosh is going to merit a spot on the All-Star game, he's going to need to show he's worth admitting.
Next Up: The Heat next visit the Washington Wizards, on Friday, February 10th, 7:00 PM tip-off.
Feb 08 10:14p by William Mueller