Dwight Howard's first game against his former team didn't exactly go as planned. The Orlando Magic got 30 points from Arron Afflalo and used the "Hack-A-Dwight" strategy throughout the second half to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 113-103 on Sunday night.
Orlando trailed by as many as seven in the fourth quarter (84-77), but outscored the Lakers 36-19 over the last 7:50 of the game. Orlando shot 50.0% from the field (43-of-86), 95.0% from the free throw line (19-of-20) and knocked down eight three-pointers. The Lakers, on the other hand, shot just 41.9% (36-of-86) from the field, 64.1% from the free throw line (25-of-39) and hit just six three-pointers.
Arron Afflalo had a huge night. Not only did he do a solid job on Kobe Bryant (Bryant had 34 points but it took him 27 shots to do it), but Afflalo scored a season-high 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting. Afflalo also grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists. Glen Davis poured in 23 points in 12 rebounds while J.J. Redick scored 14 points and continued to show what kind of playmaker he is, dishing out seven assists. Nikola Vucevic added 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Jameer Nelson, who missed Friday's loss to the Brooklyn Nets with an achilles injury and looked unlikely to go Sunday, scored 19 points and dished out a game-high 13 assists.
Dwight Howard scored 21 points and pulled down 15 rebounds, but shot went just 9-of-21 from the charity stripe, allowing the Magic to use the "Hack-A-Dwight" strategy to near perfection.
Orlando will be back in action against the Golden State Warriors Monday night.
For more on this game, check out Orlando Pinstriped Post, SB Nation Los Angeles, and Silver Screen and Roll.