NBA

Magic ends 5-game skid without Hill on the court

ORLANDO - The Magic knew things had to turn around at some point. That turned out to be Saturday night.

DeShawn Stevenson scored 18, including several key run-sparking jumpers, and Dwight Howard had 17 points and 14 rebounds in the Magic's 94-83 victory over the Nuggets.

It was Orlando's first win in six games and 13th straight at home over the Nuggets. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Denver, which was coming off a 100-92 win over Miami on Friday night.

"Hopefully this is the beginning of us getting back on track," Steve Francis said. "Most likely we'll have Grant (Hill) coming back this week. We'll get two days of practice and be ready to roll."

Hill, sidelined all season after surgery Oct. 31 for a sports hernia, practiced full speed last week and was considered a possibility against the Nuggets, but didn't suit up. His first game could be Wednesday night in New York.

Carmelo Anthony, coming off a season-high 40 points against Miami, finished with 23, and Marcus Camby added 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Nuggets.

Stevenson found his stroke in the third quarter, hitting four jumpers in the first 4:58 to help Orlando take a 61-51 lead.

"The last couple of games we'd be up six points or so, come out in the first couple of minutes (of the third quarter) and let them get their confidence up," Stevenson said. "Tonight was one of those nights it was just falling."

Denver went 3:11 without a field goal in the third and finished with four for 11 points. The Nuggets shot 41 percent and were largely unable to capitalize on 21 Magic turnovers. The Nuggets committed 18 turnovers.

"I think we did a good job defensively, but they were tired, too," Stevenson said.

With Denver's frontcourt in foul trouble much of the game, Tony Battie scored a season-high 15 and had seven rebounds. Steve Francis added 15 points and seven assists for the Magic.

Voshon Lenard scored 14 points for Denver.

Despite missing several inside shots, Orlando's second chances off 18 offensive rebounds allowed the Magic to open a 71-57 lead by the end of the third. It stayed that way for most of the fourth.

"We didn't have enough left in the tank," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "We did some good things but didn't rebound the ball well enough to make the comeback."

Denver's Kenyon Martin missed his seventh game of the season and second in a row because of a knee injury.

[Last modified December 11, 2005, 02:15:36]