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Howard a force as Magic dominate Rockets

Jan 23, 2011 - 4:30 AM Houston, TX (Sports Network) - Dwight Howard led seven Magic players in double figures with 22 points, as Orlando jumped out to a big lead and was never threatened in a 118-104 demolition of the Houston Rockets.

Howard also grabbed 14 rebounds, while Hedo Turkoglu added a season-high 21 points and five assists for the Magic, winners of three straight.

Jason Richardson and Brandon Bass each tallied 18 points in the rout.

Chase Budinger had 19 points to lead Houston, which was coming off a 115-110 loss at Memphis on Friday. Kevin Martin scored 18 points but needed 18 shots to do so.

Turkoglu scored 10 points in a relatively close first quarter, which ended with Orlando holding a 34-26 lead.

The Magic showed their quick-strike ability early in the second. After Richardson put in a reverse layup, Ryan Anderson hit a quick three off a Budinger turnover. Anderson then blocked a driving Aaron Brooks, and J.J. Redick's layup at the other end put the visitors on top 41-28 less than two minutes in.

"We wanted to establish an up-tempo game early and play with a lead," Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy said. "I thought we did a lot of things well."

Budinger briefly stopped the spurt with a bucket inside, but the Magic scored the next nine points to extend their lead to 20. Bass' tip-in with just under eight minutes left in the half yielded a 50-30 cushion.

The difference was 68-51 at halftime and reached as high as 24 in the third. Redick and Jameer Nelson hit back-to-back three-pointers late in the stanza, and Howard's free throw a little later made it 96-72.

Houston never challenged the daunting 100-76 deficit it faced heading to the fourth.

"Obviously I'm disappointed with our effort. I can't remember a game we've had like that," Houston head coach Rick Adelman said. "They pretty much did what they wanted to."

Game Notes

The Magic swept the season series for the second straight season...Redick and Anderson scored 13 and 12 points, respectively, for the Magic, who received 10 points and nine assists from Nelson...Luis Scola totaled 15 points and nine rebounds for Houston, which shot 38.9 percent overall compared to Orlando's 52.9 percent shooting effort...The Magic made 13-of-32 from three-point range.