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Turkoglu, Magic embarrass Hawks

Jan 10, 2009 - 4:20 AM By Zach Chalifour PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

ORLANDO, Florida (Ticker) -- Hedo Turkoglu scored 21 points and J.J. Redick added 15 as the Orlando Magic routed the Atlanta Hawks, 121-87, on Friday.

Dwight Howard added his league-leading 27th double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds to help the Magic tie their season-high point total.

The Magic almost let one get away against the Hawks two nights ago, squandering a 16-point fourth-quarter lead before securing a 106-102 victory in Atlanta.

"We have to pounce on them early. We started to let them back in it last time, and we learned our lesson," Howard said.

They certainly weren't going to let that happen again, as the game was not even as close as the final score would suggest, despite the 34-point margin of victory.

"They're a great team. I thought we would play well, but I didn't see that coming," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said.

The Magic dominated every facet of the game right from the start, quickly pulling away to a 41-18 lead in the first quarter while shooting an incredible 71 percent from the field (12-of-17).

If that was not enough, the home team rattled off 13 consecutive points to begin the second quarter, blowing open the game with a 54-18 lead with 7:36 left in the second.

"It wasn't just about the last game," said Magic guard Jameer Nelson, who finished with 14 points. "We've been letting people back into the game as of late, and that's one of the areas where we need to get better."

Orlando certainly did better in that regard - its lead reached as much as 50 points in the third quarter, allowing it to coast to its 11th straight home victory.

The Magic tied a season-high with 16 3-pointers (16-of-27) and finished the night with an overall 48 percent field-goal percentage (40-of-83).

Atlanta, led by Acie Law with 16 points, finished the night at just a 35-percent clip (28-of-80).

Hawks coach Mike Woodson was entirely displeased by his squad's effort.

"I'm not really happy as a coach," Woodson said. "We just didn't compete tonight, and it started with the five guys that started the game. That's unacceptable."

Hawks star Joe Johnson scored just 11 in only 19 minutes of action due to foul trouble and the one-sided nature of the contest.

"They just wanted it more than us. They came out and hit us first, and we never hit back," Johnson said.

Courtney Lee joined five other Magic players in his fourth career start, finishing with 11 points.

Asked the last time he had been involved in such a one-sided game, Lee had to go back to his scholastic days.

"This was probably the first time since high school," he said. "At this level, it was a great win for us."