NBA ROUNDUP : With Shaq Injured, Magic Turns to Scott

Orlando was turned inside out by Shaquille O’Neal’s injury.

But it worked just as well as Dennis Scott turned up the perimeter game by sinking six three-pointers and scoring 27 points to lead the Magic to a 107-103 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks Saturday night at Orlando.

O’Neal, the league’s leading scorer at 29.7 points per game, was out because of a one-inch cut to his left foot sustained a night earlier when he stepped on broken glass in his kitchen. He is expected to return Thursday against Seattle.

“I’m just trying to make something happen,” said Scott, who came off the bench in the second quarter to make five three-pointers and finish the period with a team-record 20 points.

Scott’s three-pointer with 1:36 left tied the score, 101-101, and Anfernee Hardaway’s three-pointer on the next possession put Orlando ahead for good.

The victory kept the Magic undefeated at home in 21 games this season and improved their league-best record to 35-8.

Horace Grant, who had missed the previous game because of an hyperextended left knee, returned with 25 points and 14 rebounds.

The Bucks’ Vin Baker took advantage of O’Neal’s absence, scoring 27 points.

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Utah 111, New Jersey 94--John Stockton moved past Oscar Robertson into second place on the all-time career assists list, leading the Jazz over the Nets at Salt Lake City for its 12th victory in a row.

Stockton had 14 assists for a total of 9,897. He topped Robertson with his fifth assist of the game. Magic Johnson is the all-time leader with 9,921, but Stockton should surpass him this week.

Stockton and Karl Malone each scored 20 points for the Jazz.

The Nets’ Derrick Coleman scored only eight points on two-of-11 shooting.

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Indiana 106, Philadelphia 103--Byron Scott sank a three-pointer with one-tenth of a second left in overtime to lift the Pacers at Indianapolis.

Rik Smits led Indiana with 30 points and nine rebounds.

Dana Barros, who scored 24 of his 27 points after halftime and forced overtime with a three-pointer, had tied the score at 103-103 with 50 seconds left in overtime on a free throw after an illegal defense technical foul against the Pacers.

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Charlotte 102, Atlanta 93--The Hornets were determined not to lose to the Hawks twice in four days, and a 16-3 third-quarter run along with Larry Johnson’s 20 points and Alonzo Mourning’s 19 ensured it at Atlanta.

“Atlanta embarrassed us in our building,” Johnson said of a 103-96 loss Wednesday night. “It wasn’t going to happen twice.”

Stacey Augmon led the Hawks with 22 points.

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Sacramento 87, Dallas 84--Mitch Richmond’s two free throws with 15.4 seconds left at Dallas helped send the Mavericks to their seventh consecutive defeat.

Rookie Brian Grant had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Kings, who have won 11 of 16 games.

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Houston 114, Minnesota 93--The Rockets lost two starters in the third quarter but Hakeem Olajuwon had 15 of his 25 points in the third period in a victory over the Timberwolves at Houston.

Otis Thorpe had 18 points when he was ejected for the first time in 10 seasons after complaining about a foul with 9:36 left in the quarter and Robert Horry left after spraining his ankle with 6:24 to go.

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San Antonio 103, Denver 77--Sean Elliott scored 31 points and David Robinson had 18 points, 12 rebounds and seven blocked shots to lead the Spurs at San Antonio.

Elliott scored 24 points in the first half as the Spurs took a 56-36 lead. The Nuggets, losers of six of seven games, could get no closer than nine afterward.

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Detroit 89, Miami 85--Allan Houston’s three-pointer with 36 seconds to play broke an 83-83 tie at Auburn Hills, Mich., and helped the Pistons win for only the second time in six games.