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Magic shoot their way past Pacers

Jan 17, 2013 - 4:15 AM Orlando, FL (Sports Network) - Nikola Vucevic racked up 16 points and 15 rebounds and the Orlando Magic used some sharp-shooting from 3-point range to earn a 97-86 victory over the previously hot Indiana Pacers at Amway Arena.

Orlando made good on 12-of-21 shots from beyond the arc against the NBA's leader in 3-point percentage defense, with Jameer Nelson and J.J. Redick each going 4-of-6 from that distance in dual 14-point, six-assist efforts. Arron Afflalo added 15 points to help the Magic record only their second win in their last 13 outings.

In contrast, Indiana -- which had won five of six and 14 of 18 coming in -- went a poor 2-of-17 on 3-point tries.

"When we're all full throttle, we can play with the best of them," said Magic forward Glen Davis.

Paul George led the Pacers with 20 points and 10 rebounds, with George Hill finishing with 15 points and David West scoring 14 along with seven rebounds in defeat.

The Pacers started out well, opening up a 15-8 lead over the game's first seven minutes behind eight points from George, but missed eight of their next nine shots as Orlando closed out the initial quarter with a 14-2 run.

A Redick 3-pointer that finished off the burst enabled the Magic to grab a 22-17 edge, and the margin was extended to nine when he and Josh McRoberts knocked down triples after a George basket began the second quarter.

Orlando continued to deliver from the perimeter, with E'Twaun Moore and Nelson each burying treys to highlight an 8-0 spurt that put the Magic up by a 40-23 count with 5:41 left before halftime. Orlando would hit on 6-of-12 attempts from long distance over the first two quarters and carried a commanding 51-35 advantage into the break.

"They got just completely red-hot from the perimeter," said Pacers head coach Frank Vogel of the Magic. "We kept them out of the paint, kept them off of the free throw lines, but obviously they drilled us from the perimeter with their shooting."

The Magic maintained a double-digit differential for the majority of the second half, with the lead growing to 22 points after Redick capped a 12-4 stretch with another 3-ball with 3:37 remaining in the third quarter.

Indiana would trim its deficit to 77-64 by the start of the fourth period with a 9-2 sequence culminating with back-to-back buckets by West, but Orlando answered once again with some more 3-point marksmanship.

With the Magic up 79-66 with under 10 minutes left, Nelson hit two more treys to spark an 8-2 flurry that pushed Orlando's cushion to 19 points.

Indiana only got as close as nine points down the rest of the way, and that came in the contest's final minute.

Game Notes

The 86 points allowed were the Magic's lowest total since a 90-83 home triumph over Washington on Dec. 19, and the team had lost their next six games at Amway Arena prior to Wednesday's result ... The Pacers entered the matchup having held the opposition to a 31.6 percent success rate from 3-point range ... Indiana is now 5-13 when allowing 90 points or more, compared to a 19-3 record when it surrenders less than that number ... Vucevic posted his 13th double-double in the last 17 games ... Orlando topped the Pacers for the ninth time in the last 10 meetings between the teams and has won 15 of the last 18 encounters in the series.