NBA

McGrady's spurt keeps Magic hot

ORLANDO -- Tracy McGrady might have won over a few MVP voters with his 30-point, 10-assist performance against another candidate for the NBA's top award. Even better for the Magic, he helped it win another crucial game.

McGrady scored seven in the final 3:54 and outdueled Minnesota's Kevin Garnett to help Orlando defeat the Timberwolves 110-107 Thursday night. The night before, McGrady had 41 points and a key block to lead the Magic back from a 20-point deficit to beat New Orleans.

"It seems like it's not going to stop here," said McGrady, who extended his streak of 30-point games to 12 despite being hounded by Garnett. "These two wins should really give us a lot of confidence for the remainder of the season."

Orlando, which has won six of seven, has a half-game lead over idle Boston for the No. 6 playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Garnett had 26 points and 14 rebounds for his 20th double double in his past 21 games. But he scored nine after halftime, worn out from defending the NBA's top scorer.

"The mind is saying yes, but the body is saying something else," Garnett said.

McGrady's two free throws with 24.4 seconds remaining put Orlando up 106-104, its first lead since 7-6, and capped a run of nine points in a 2:10 span.

Garnett drew a foul on Minnesota's ensuing possession, but he missed one of his two free throws with 17.2 seconds left. Darrell Armstrong then hit four free throws in the final 15.6 seconds to seal the win. Armstrong scored eight of his 16 in the final quarter, and he drew a charge from Garnett with 1:15 left.

SPURS 98, ROCKETS 85: Stephen Jackson scored 27 and Tim Duncan added 25 points and 14 rebounds for host San Antonio.

Jackson scored 11 in the third quarter, when the Spurs extended their 11-point halftime lead to as much as 20. The Rockets trimmed the lead to 11 in the fourth, but Jackson stopped San Antonio's slide by hitting the last of his five 3-pointers with 5:16 remaining.

Pacers sign Tim Hardaway

INDIANAPOLIS -- Tim Hardaway feared his career was over when teams ignored him during training camps. The Pacers were concerned about backcourt depth entering the final weeks of the season.

Both problems were solved.

Hardaway gave up his job as a television analyst to sign with Indiana and try to give the struggling Pacers a boost.

The five-time All-Star point guard, 36, is expected to be in uniform for today's game against Chicago and is eligible for the playoffs because he is a free agent and not a waiver pickup.

"Until they called, I thought it was over with," Hardaway said. "Don't even consider it. Don't even worry about it."

The Pacers have lost 15 of 19.

SONICS: Seattle suspended guard Joseph Forte for one game for conduct detrimental to the team.

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