ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) Aaron Gordon had 29 points and 11 rebounds to help the Orlando Magic hold off the free-falling Phoenix Suns 105-99 on Saturday night.
Nikola Vucevic added 24 points and nine rebounds, and D.J. Augustin nearly had his first triple-double of the season with 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. The Magic had lost three in a row.
Phoenix has lost 11 straight and 26 of 28. Josh Jackson led the Suns with 18 points, Alex Len had 15, and Tyler Ulis and former Magic guard Elfrid Payton added 14 apiece.
The Magic were 5 of 21 from 3-point range in the first three periods, then hit 6 of 9 in the fourth quarter to pull away. Gordon had two of them, and his reverse dunk gave Orlando a 101-94 lead with two minutes to play.
Orlando trailed by eight at halftime, but took advantage of eight Phoenix turnovers in the third period to regain control. Gordon’s two free throws finished an 11-0 run that helped Orlando to a 71-62 lead with just under three minutes left.
Phoenix scored five points in the final three seconds of the period and four more to start the fourth and the Suns were back in front 78-77 with 11 minutes to play.
Rodney Purvis started the Magic rally with a 3-pointer.
TIP INS
Suns: The team’s top two scorers, Devin Booker (sprained hand) and T.J. Warren (knee inflammation), missed the game. … Phoenix was 2 of 15 from 3-point range in the first half.
Magic: SF Jonathon Simmons missed his third straight game with a wrist injury and will be out at least another week. … Rookie Jonathan Isaac missed another game with a foot injury. Isaac, the team’s No. 1 pick last summer, has played in only 25 games. … The Magic’s next six games are against opponents with sub-.500 records.
UP NEXT
Suns: Host Boston on Monday night.
Magic: Host Brooklyn on Wednesday night.
