ORLANDO, Fla., April 8 (Ticker) -- With all the focus on Tracy McGrady, Darrell Armstrong came through for the Orlando Magic when they needed it.

Armstrong scored five straight points to snap a tie and support a 22-point performance by McGrady as the Magic continued their dominance of the Houston Rockets with an 83-74 victory.

Rookie Eddie Griffin gave Houston its final lead at 67-65 with a layup with 5:13 remaining. McGrady tied it with a long jumper that triggered a 13-1 run.

After the Rockets came up empty, Armstrong grabbed a rebound and pulled up for a short jumper for a 69-67 lead. He followed by nailing a 3-pointer for a five-point cushion.

NBA TV highlights from Rockets-Magic: 56k | 300k Tracy McGrady and the Magic had no problems rising above the Rockets. Fernando Medina NBAE/Getty Images

"Those shots, I know I can make," Armstrong said. "I've just got to start knocking them down earlier."

McGrady did the rest of the damage in the run for Orlando, which has won 10 straight home games against Houston and 14 of the last 15 meetings overall. He nailed three straight jumpers and capped the run with 1:44 remaining.

McGrady scored 14 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 10 rebounds and six assists. He exited with seconds remaining as the crowd serenaded him with chants of "MVP, MVP."

"I looked up at the clock and saw that I had only eight points and I said, 'OK, I've got to take over,'" McGrady said. "They really didn't have anything to lose, but they came to play. We finally realized that in the second half."

Orlando also got a boost from reserve guard Troy Hudson, who scored 19 points on 7-of-13 shooting. The victory allowed the Magic to pull within two games of Boston for the third seed in the Eastern Conference. They are one victory away from clinching a playoff spot.

The first quarter featured low scoring and poor play from both sides, but Orlando was able to establish a 22-10 lead. The Rockets responded with 12 straight points to tie it, but the Magic recovered for a 38-29 halftime lead.

"I bet they used 20 seconds on every shot attempt," Orlando coach Doc Rivers said. "It is very difficult to run when a team plays like that. They wanted us to play slow and forced us into that game."

The 12 points in the first quarter and 29 in the first half were the fewest allowed by the Magic this season.

Steve Francis led all scorers with 29 points for Houston. Rookie Terence Morris was the only other Rocket in double figures with 11 points as they shot just 39 percent (32-of-82).

"We couldn't throw it in the ocean," Houston coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "It's a great lesson that if you go out there and just lay it on the line, even if you shoot like we did, you may have a chance to win."

Tomjanovich apparently can be counted as one of McGrady's supporters in the MVP race.

"What he does is legendary type stuff," he said. "We've got some wonderful players in this league and he's right there near the top of the list."

The Rockets played without starting guard Cuttino Mobley, who was out with the flu, and it showed. They committed 18 turnovers and were a woeful 3-of-21 from beyond the arc.

Houston enjoyed a 50-38 rebounding edge as Kelvin Cato grabbed 12 and Morris 10. The Rockets' poor shooting led to 15 offensive boards.