(Getty Images / NBAE)

MILWAUKEE, March 28 (AP) -- Dwight Howard had 25 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Orlando Magic to their franchise-record 24th road victory with a 103-86 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night.

Rashard Lewis added 16 points and seven rebounds, and Carlos Arroyo had 13 points and nine assists for the Magic, who improved to 24-13 on the road. The team was 15-26 last season.

Mo Williams finished with 18 points and five assists for Milwaukee, which lost its third straight game and ninth in 10 games.

Michael Redd was just 3-for-16 from the field and had seven points. The Bucks shot 34 percent for the game.

Howard scored 14 of his points in the first quarter and Orlando used a 14-0 run in the period to set the tone. The Magic led 60-43 at the half and the Magic put the game away with a 13-2 run in the third.

Howard started the run with two baskets and a 3-pointer by Hedo Turkoglu gave Orlando a 69-47 lead with 8:58 left.

Full AP recap

Postgame News and Notes Tonight’s victory gives the Magic the edge in the season series with a 2-1 record vs. the Bucks. The win is Orlando’s third in their last 19 visits to the Brew City. Tonight’s victory also ensures the Magic a new franchise high with 24 road victories this season. The team’s previous best was a 23-18 tally during the 1995-1996 season. Now 24-18, this year’s Magic squad has four more road contests to extend that mark. The Bucks fell to .500 at the Bradley Center (18-18). Milwaukee’s 59 rebounds tied their season high set March 2 at Indiana. Their 25 offensive rebounds were two off their season-best. With a 59 to 44 edge on the boards, Milwaukee has now out-rebounded their opponents in six of the last seven games. In those six games with more boards, the Bucks are averaging 48.0 rebounds. Eight of Dwight Howard’s 14 points in the 1st quarter were on free throws. Howard was 8 of 10 from the charity strip in the opening frame, and sunk 11 of 14 overall tonight. Dwight Howard also extended his league-leading double-double tally with his 64th on the season. He finished with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Like Howard, Charlie Villanueva had a double-double in place by the end of the 3rd quarter. Charlie V. finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the year. The Magic went on a 14-0 run midway through the 1st quarter, extending a 15-12 lead to 29-12. The Bucks followed that run by outscoring the Magic 11-5 the rest of the quarter, including an 8-0 run. The Magic outscored the Bucks 15-6 to open the 3rd quarter. The Magic improved to 10-5 against the Central Division on the season, including a 5-2 mark on the road.

Box score
Full play-by-play
Photo gallery
Download a PDF of the Bucks Game Notes
NBA.com game page
Bucks roster
Magic roster
Bucks injury report
GAMEDAY ARCHIVE

Highlights from Friday's loss to Orlando

Click "play" on the video player to the right to watch highlights from Friday's loss to Orlando. Or use the links below to watch and listen to archived video and audio.

Note: Video player may take a few minutes to load.

Locker room: Royal Ivey
Post-game: Coach K
Game highlights

For exclusive locker room video from tonight's game, check out the AT&T Multimedia Vault!

Larry Krystkowiak

(On early troubles containing Dwight Howard…)
“When he gets it going inside … we used an awful lot of our fouls and he was eight for 10 from the free throw line (in the 1st quarter). You have to make a decision on whether you’re going to take that away, because they’re one of the best three-point shooting teams in the league, and they had both ends of it going. It was a tough challenge for us.”

(On the team’s shooting…)
“You can try to drop as many storylines as you want, but the bottom line I’d say probably two-third of our shots were good shots. They just didn’t go in. We still have issues where we’re forcing shots at times and shooting up attempts a little bit out of sync when we don’t have very much of an opportunity to get board coverage or defensive transitions. For the most part, there were a lot of possessions where we moved the ball and guys missed open shots.”

(On Yi Jianlian making adjustments...)
“He started off the season, maybe as an unknown commodity … with a lot of pick and pop. He’d hit open jump shots and now teams are taking that away from him. He’s got to develop a game in the low post – which he’s working on – and I think with some time he’s going to put on some weight. I think confidence is a big part, just him knowing what he needs to do to counteract some of that pushing and shoving down there.”

(On the 40th anniversary team being on hand tonight…)
“I would like to think, if anything, it should have been some motivation. You’ve got a lot of guys from different eras with a lot of blood, sweat and tears for this organization that have laid it on the line. Maybe it sounds corny, in a night like tonight I think that we’re playing for a lot more than just ourselves. Those guys were watching and I certainly would have liked a better performance. We ran into a (Magic) team that’s pretty focused.”

(On a solid performance from Yi as he goes through a tough stretch …)
“When you look at the big scheme of things and what his future will be, I think it’s a good learning year for Yi. I think when young guys come in and don’t deal with any adversity, they think the league is easy. For me, I did the same as a rookie. You go through some trials and tribulations your first and second year. You kind of figure it out, and as you grow, you respect the game, you respect the way you play and you respect wins and losses. You make sure you approach the game the right way. … His body’s tired, but he’s continuing to play hard and he’s continuing to work hard.”

(On falling behind early…)
“We turned the ball over early, we got down quick, and they were up 15 in the first quarter. So we dug ourselves a hole and it’s hard to play behind against a good team.”

(On Dwight Howard’s fast start…)
“He’s strong down there. He gets a touch in the paint, you might as well forget about it because he’s going to take you up with the basketball and try to tear down the rim. He got a lot of touches and … at the same time he’s a good player, he plays hard.”

Photos by Gary Dineen (NBAE/Getty Images)

Oscar Robertson

Print RSS Feeds FastBreak Tix