Lee Leads Way As Magic Stop Sixers 96-87; Series Tied 1-1

Posted by Jeff Sack under NBA Game Recap, NBA PLAYOFFS

When one thinks of go-to-guys for the Orlando Magic the name Courtney Lee is not one of the first that come to mind. However Tuesday night as Orlando hosted the Philadelphia 76ers Lee filled that role as he scored a team high 24 points and helped the Magic beat Philadelphia 96-87. The victory for Orlando evens the series with the first round Playoff series at 1-1. Lee led six Magic players in double figures; veteran Sixers point guard Andre Miller led all players with 30 points.

The first 12 minutes of this contest was a back and forth affair that fittingly ended with the score knotted up at 21-21. The start of the second was also tight but then the Magic pulled ahead and walked into the locker room at the half on top 46-39.

Philadelphia never really seemed to be able to find any offensive cohesion in the third quarter. The result was they would trail heading into the final period by the score of 70-62. The Sixers were able to get to within 5 points with 2:56 left in the contest as Andre Miller drained a trey making the score 84-79. However Philadelphia could never get any closer and the Magic held on for the victory.

Shooting guard Courtney Lee led the way for Orlando as he put 24 points on the board, 3 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 assist. Rashard Lewis had 16 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal while Hedo Turkoglu also added 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Dwight Howard who was plagued by foul trouble and fouled out of the contest still recorded a double-double 11 points, 10 boards, 4 blocks, 2 assists and 1 steal. Rafer Alston and Anthony Johnson would each score 11 points for the Magic as well.

Veteran Andre Miller kept Philadelphia in this game almost by himself. The point guard dropped 30 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Andre Iguodala scored 21 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals while Thaddeus Young added 20 points, 3 assists and 3 rebounds. The series tied at 1-1 will now move to Philadelphia and will resume Friday night.

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