Final
Suns return home to face Magic
Mar 19, 2014 - 2:17 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - The Phoenix Suns return home after a 2-1 road trip Wednesday night to host the Orlando Magic at US Airways Center.The Suns knocked off the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors, but had the brief winning streak halted by a loss to the Brooklyn Nets on St. Patrick's Day Monday.
Phoenix has fallen 1 1/2 games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the eighth seed in the Western Conference. The Suns have dropped four of their last six, but play two straight at home.
On Monday, the Suns fell 108-95, as five Nets scored in double figures.
Markieff Morris and Gerald Green had 18 and 17 points, respectively, in reserve roles for Phoenix. Goran Dragic tallied 13 points and three steals, and Eric Bledsoe managed 10 in the setback.
"We just didn't have the effort," Phoenix head coach Jeff Hornacek said. "You hope it's just one of those nights and move on to the next one."
Phoenix allowed the Nets to shoot 58.6 percent from the floor.
The Magic have lost six straight and began their four-game western road trip with a 103-89 drubbing at the hands of the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night.
Orlando, which has dropped four in a row as the visitor, trailed by 21 at the start of the fourth quarter and never threatened over the final 12 minutes.
"We were always taking the ball out of the net," Magic center Nikola Vucevic told the team's website. "It's hard to score against set defenses. It's a lot easier when we get some stops and get some fastbreak points and score when they aren't set. But we took the ball out of the net almost 10 straight times and it was hard to keep a rhythm."
Vucevic led the Magic with 15 points, followed by 14 from Tobias Harris off the bench. Moe Harkless chipped in 12 and Kyle O'Quinn and Victor Oladipo both managed 10 in the loss.
The starting backcourt of Jameer Nelson and Arron Afflalo combined for eight points on 4-for-14 shooting.
The Magic, who are 4-31 outside of Orlando, which is the worst road mark in the league, will also visit the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Lakers on this sojourn.
The Suns beat the Magic by eight in Orlando on Nov. 24 to snap a five-game series losing streak. The Magic have won two straight in Phoenix, but lost the previous eight in Arizona.
Mar 20 12:19 AM- ORLANDO: 76
PHOENIX: 82
End of 3rd
Mar 19 11:48 PM - ORLANDO: 52
PHOENIX: 52
Halftime
Mar 19 11:07 PM - ORLANDO: 25
PHOENIX: 25
End of 1st
Mar 19 10:36 PM - ORLANDO: 2
PHOENIX: 0
1st Quarter - 11:40
Mar 19 10:11 PM
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