If the Orlando Magic (32-19) came to Wednesday night’s game with the mentality that the New York Knicks (26-25) wouldn’t come to play due to the absence of both forward Amare Stoudemire and point guard Jeremy Lin from their lineup, then their 108-86 defeat might have been well deserved.

Despite sporting the third best record in the Eastern Conference, and also fifth in the league, this was not the first or even second time this season that the Magic were the victims of an old-fashioned beatdown where they were simply just run out of the gym. New Orleans, Boston, and Chicago have also embarrassed Orlando this season, and they looked nothing like a team who had won three straight entering the contest.

“We got behind, they hit a lot of shots, they got us down,” said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy. “And then we just sort of died. We didn’t do anything we had talked about doing. We played with no energy. We were very individual at the offensive end. And not much effort.”

Lin and Stoudemire were both inactive for a second consecutive game with a sore left knee and bulging back disk, respectively. While Lin’s injury has been classified as minor, it was announced earlier in the day that Stoudemire would miss the next two to four weeks, with surgery unnecessary.

Carmelo Anthony knew he would have to step up for New York, even though he was dealing with a minor groin injury of his own. He had no problem doing so, scoring a game high 25 points on 9/15 shooting. Anthony had a solid all-around game, adding six rebounds and five assists as well.

With 25 of his own, rookie teammate Iman Shumpert equaled Anthony’s point outpoint and also recorded a new career high in doing so. “Right now, with the coaching change, we’ve been playing extremely well,” said Anthony. “Guys seem to be responding pretty well. We’ve been really locked in on our mission right now.”

A thrashing by the Knicks did not seem likely early on, as Magic point guard Jameer Nelson’s 11 first quarter points, which led both sides, helped his team attain a 29-25 lead going into the second.

Nelson went 7/14 overall and was the Magic’s top scorer with 17. Steve Novak’s jumper with 9:41 remaining in the second would conclude a 6-0 Knicks run to open the second, giving them their first lead of the night at 31-29. After Orlando tied the game with a bucket on the next possession, New York went on a 7-0 run, establishing a 47-38 lead thanks to a lay-in by Anthony at the 2:26 mark.

Two free throws from Magic center Dwight Howard ended the run at 12-0 with 38.5 seconds remaining in the half, but a Novak three at the buzzer – his third of the half – gave the Knicks a commanding 57-41 lead entering the locker room. Howard was essentially a non-factor in the ball game, scoring 12 points and bringing down just five boards.

Novak made four of eight three’s in almost 23 and a half minutes of play, putting up 16 points. They may lead the league in both three pointers attempted and made, but the Magic were shut down in this one, going 9/26 from behind the arc. After making eight three’s in Orlando’s last game, forward Ryan Anderson hit just one in this one, scoring a mere three points.

When everyone thought that the Knicks could not outdo a 32-12 second quarter, they did. It started with 8:45 shown on the third quarter clock. The Knicks went ahead 69-49 on a floater by backup point guard Baron Davis. Between that time and Shumpert’s jumper with 2:58 left they ripped off 21 unanswered.

Shell-shocked, the Magic found themselves trailing 90-59 before taking the floor for the final quarter. They were able to cut the deficit down to 15 with 2:10 left to play, but the Knicks held on easily, 108-86. Orlando shot just 44.8% from the field, and allowed New York to shoot 50.9%.

“It should be frustrating for everybody,” said Howard. “We just have to step up and play the right way, and when we don’t, we have games like this.”

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After back-to-back losses to the best two teams the East has to offer – the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls – the Orlando Magic got off the snide in a convincing fashion on Wednesday night with a 103-93 home victory over the Phoenix Suns.

A ten point margin of victory may not be much in today’s NBA, but in reality the final score did not tell the proper story of how lopsided the game truly was in the second half.

The Magic extended their lead to as many as 22 in the fourth quarter before the Suns were able to cut the lead in half with four and a half minutes remaining in the game. Orlando would not allow them to get any closer from that point on. The win improves the Magic’s record to30-18, putting them three and a half games in front of the Philadelphia 76ers for the number three seed in the conference.

“We just wanted to play our game, no matter what the situation was or what we scored,” said Jameer Nelson, the Magic’s starting point guard. “Whoever’s out there, just go out and play to our capabilities so we could be good collectively.”

Entering the game at an even 23-23, the Suns dropped back under .500 with the loss. However, the Magic were well aware that this team was not to be taken lightly because of their record. Despite losing a road game to Florida’s other team the previous night, the Heat, Phoenix stepped onto the Amway Center floor as one of the hottest teams in the league, having gone 9-3 since the All Star break and coming out victorious in 11 of their last 15 overall.

Magic forward Ryan Anderson, who had one of his best performances of the season and finished with a game high 29 points, had nine in the opening quarter on three-three pointers. The usual leading scorer for the Magic, center Dwight Howard, had yet another monster night with 28 points and 16 rebounds, giving him his 39th double-double of the season.

Thirteen first quarter points from Suns guard Jared Dudley kept Phoenix within striking distance after one, as the Magic held a slim 27-21 lead. Dudley only scored four additional points over the next three quarters, but still managed to be the Suns leading scorer with 17. The Magic began opening up the game in the second quarter, outscoring the Suns 30-23 and taking a 57-44 lead at the half.

In fact, it should have been a 59-44 lead, but backup point guard Chris Duhon inexplicably missed an open breakaway layup as the final buzzer of the first half sounded. Luckily for the Magic, that didn’t come back to haunt them.

Suns’ point guard Steve Nash was responsible for 12 of his team’s first half points, but was held scoreless in the second half. He also had just two assists on the night. Orlando kept its foot on the gas pedal in the third, and by quarter’s end they had acquired a 19 point lead, 81-62.

The game appeared to be in hand until Phoenix went on a late run to make it a 96-85 game, however Anderson’s career high-tying seventh three pointer following a Magic timeout killed the Suns’ momentum. The Magic would not surrender their double digit lead and made their way across the finish line with ease.

As a team, the Magic made 11 of their 23 three point attempts. Just as important, they limited the lethal shooters of the Suns to just 4/12 from beyond the arc. Fans kept their eye on Suns’ center Marcin Gortat, who was traded by the Magic last season and is currently having his best season by far, averaging 15.9 points and exactly 10 rebounds per game.

Gortat was Howard’s backup from 2007 until he was dealt in 2011. Although he was able to rip down nine boards, the Magic held him to just four points altogether. “Dwight played extremely well, and I thought we defended Marcin’s offense very, very well,” said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy.

Both teams play their next games on Friday night. The Magic will play host to the Cleveland Cavaliers, while the Suns will visit the Indiana Pacers.

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For most of the season it seemed like there was a fairly strong possibility that Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard would actually be wearing a red New Jersey Nets uniform, playing the role of villain when the teams met on March 16 at the Amway Center – one day after the trade deadline – as opposed to continuing on as the Magic’s star, leading them to a comfortable 86-70 victory.

Howard shocked the basketball world on Thursday with his decision to remain under contract with Orlando through next season, and proceeded to follow it up with an 18 point, 6 rebound effort against New Jersey, the team many believed to be the frontrunner in acquiring his services before the deadline.

“I don’t think anyone asked me any questions about trades, so that part is over with,” said Howard about the season-long situation after the win.

Forward Glen Davis and point guard Jameer Nelson each chipped in 13 points as Orlando’s second leading scorers behind Howard. Forward Ryan Anderson’s 12 point night made him the team’s next highest point man, followed by forward Hedo Turkoglu and shooting guard Jason Richardson, who both added 10.

Howard scored 10 of his 18 in the first quarter on a perfect 5/5 from the field. He would then only take two shots in the second quarter, missing both and going scoreless for the remainder of the half.

A 3/3 second half with two made free throws gave him his final 8 points on 8/10 shooting.

New Jersey was considerably banged up, as All Star point guard Deron Williams sat out for the fourth straight game with a sore right calf, along with backup guard Jordan Farmar, suffering from a strained right groin, and center Brook Lopez, who has been unavailable since March 4 with a sprained right ankle.

The Magic certainly took advantage of New Jersey’s health issues, never trailing the rest of the way after falling behind 2-0 in the early moments.

Orlando took an 11-4 lead with a 7-0 run that concluded with 7:41 remaining in the first quarter. They ended the quarter with a 22-18 lead. A 12-2 run extended the lead to double digits, 43-29, with 2:57 left in the half.

Jameer Nelson’s three pointer with 2.1 to go in the half ended a 7-0 Nets run, making it a 46-36 score in favor of Orlando at halftime.

Nets guard/forward Gerald Green, who is on his second 10-day contract with the team, went 6/9 from the floor and led them with 14 points total, half of which came on 3/3 shooting in the first quarter.

A 21-11 scoring stretch by the Magic in the third quarter stretched their lead all the way out to 20 at 67-47, their largest of the night.

The Nets were able to make the score manageable when a long alley-oop pass from forward Deshaun Stevenson accidentally banked into the basket for a three pointer during the final seconds of the third and cut the lead to 72-60 entering the fourth. It was easily one of the most bizarre three pointers ever witnessed.

But the Magic never allowed the Nets to creep any closer than 12 points in the final period, and they coasted toward an 86-70 win.

“I was happy,” said Magic coach Stan Van Gundy about his team’s overall performance. “I thought we did a good job on their starters. Their bench guys, Gerald Green got going, but I was fairly happy with our defense. The only thing I was unhappy with honestly was the 20 turnovers … again, just mindless.”

The Nets now sit at 15-30 following the loss, but just a reasonable five and a half games behind the Milwaukee Bucks for the eighth and final playoff seed in the East. They will host the New Orleans Hornets on Saturday night.

As for The Magic, they are now third in the East with a 29-16 record. They will make their way to Miami for a Sunday night matchup against the Heat, who they have beaten two out of three times this season, including this past Tuesday, 104-98, and trail by only four games in the standings.

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