Nets rout Magic
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brook Lopez produced a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, and the Brooklyn Nets trounced the Orlando Magic, 107-68, at the Amway Center in the opener of a home-and-home series.
Four others scored in double-figures as well for Brooklyn, and despite injuries to Gerald Wallace and Marshon Brooks, the Nets played their most complete game of the season, albeit it was against an injury-riddle Magic squad.
"We haven't played great basketball this year," said Nets coach Avery Johnson. "But this was a really good game for us."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Andray Blatche and Jerry Stackhouse fueled the Brooklyn bench, which outscored Orlando's 55-18. Blatche scored a team-high 15 points and grabbed nine boards while Stackhouse poured in 11 in his Nets debut.
"We know when we get in the game we have to come out with a lot of energy," said Blatche of the bench play. "We have to take care of the paint and run the offense. We know when we get in there, its time to go to work."
Starters Deron Williams and Joe Johnson chipped in 12 and 13, respectively, for the Nets, who led by as many as 39 points in snapping a 10-game losing streak against the Magic.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Still playing without starters Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson, the Magic struggled to get anything done offensively and failed to score 20 points in any quarter.
E'Twaun Moore dropped a game-high 18 points and Aaron Afflalo netted 12 for Orlando, which has dropped three straight after winning its first two games. The two teams will square off again in Brooklyn on Sunday.
Before Dwight Howard was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando and Brooklyn tried multiple times to work out a trade to send Howard to the Nets, and Lopez, who was considered a center piece in any deal, came out with something to prove for Brooklyn.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He scored 11 points in the first quarter to help give the Nets the early lead, but Orlando closed out the period on a 9-2 run and trailed just 19-17 going into the second quarter.
But the Nets came out firing in the second, shooting 54.5 percent for the period, and led by as many as 16 points with 6:04 to go in the quarter. Stackhouse nettted all of his points in the period, as he connected on 3-of-4 from downtown and scored on a layup to give Brooklyn a 39-23 lead.
The Nets maintained a double-digit edge the rest of the quarter and carried a 50-36 lead going into halftime.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brooklyn continued its dominance in the third, outscoring the Magic 20-9 through the first nine minutes. Orlando turned the ball over five times in the period, which led to nine points for the Nets. Blatche's layup concluded the quarter and gave the Nets a 75-51 lead going into the final period.
On Monday, the Nets blew a 22-point lead to Timberwolves, but Brooklyn never took its foot of the gas on Friday. They scored 32 points in the final period, outscoring Orlando by 15 points in the quarter.
The Nets forced 18 turnovers for the game, which led to 24 points. They also held an opponent under 100 points for the first time all season.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Game Notes
Josh Childress also made his debut for Brooklyn. He played just over 25 minutes, scoring just two points ... The Nets won in Orlando for the first time since Jan. 2, 2008 ... The Magic had 30 points in the paint compared to the Nets' 46.