Magic’s Armstrong Shows Strength

Leading the Orlando Magic is nothing new to Darrell Armstrong.

With Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady unable to play, Armstrong carried Orlando with 21 points as the Magic beat the Atlanta Hawks, 107-104, Saturday night at Atlanta.

“We needed somebody to step up,” said Armstrong, who led the Magic last season in scoring, assists, steals and minutes played. “We didn’t care who it was. The whole team stepped up.”

Armstrong scored 11 points in the fourth quarter on five-for-seven shooting. With Orlando up 93-91, Armstrong made a three-pointer from the top of the key to pad the lead with 6:10 remaining.

His 10-foot jumper made it 98-91 with 5:28 to go, and he added a 15-footer from the left side 40 seconds later put the Magic up 100-93.

Hill, who sat on the bench in street clothes, was sidelined with a sore left ankle. According to Magic spokesman George Galante, Hill will not be placed on the injured list but Galante did say Hill probably will sit out the next two weeks.

McGrady was serving a one-game suspension for an altercation in Orlando’s loss to Philadelphia Friday night.

“Darrell was huge,” Magic Coach Doc Rivers said. “I get credit, the coaches get credit, Darrell Armstrong should get credit because he is the coach on the basketball floor. He took over the game today. He turned to the bench and said, ‘Put me in a pick-and-roll at the top, and I’ll deliver,’ and I was smart enough to listen.”

Roshown McLeod, who finished with a career-high 24 points, brought the Hawks within three when his 20-foot jumper made it 105-102 with 1:09 remaining.

Jason Terry’s driving layup with 19.6 seconds to go cut Orlando’s lead to 105-104. Jim Jackson watched his four-footer in the lane roll out of the basket, ending the Hawks’ last legitimate chance to win with 3.2 seconds remaining.

Portland 97, Seattle 90--Damon Stoudamire sank four free throws in the final 20 seconds to preserve a victory over the SuperSonics at Seattle after two losses to open the season.

Portland was ahead by as many as 21 points in the fourth quarter before Seattle staged a 22-6 run to pull within one at 89-88 on Patrick Ewing’s turnaround baseline jumper with 50 seconds left.

Shawn Kemp sank a jump shot to put the Trail Blazers up 91-88 with 21 seconds left, and Stoudamire’s four free throws put the game out of reach.

Stoudamire led Portland with 21 points, Kemp added 18 points and 14 rebounds and Steve Smith and Rasheed Wallace each had 16 points.

Philadelphia 84, Miami 82--The 76ers improved the NBA’s best record to 4-0 by stopping the Heat twice in the final 10 seconds for a victory at Philadelphia.

Miami’s Eddie Jones scored 26 points, including six three-pointers, but missed a 25-footer with nine seconds to go.

A bad pass by Toni Kukoc gave Miami one last chance with 3.4 seconds left, but after Tim Hardaway took an inbounds pass near midcourt, Eric Snow stole the ball to give Philadelphia the win. Hardaway followed the officials off the court, arguing that he had been fouled.

The 76ers have been unfazed by a tough schedule, winning in four cities in the first five nights of the season. Allen Iverson led Philadelphia with 23 points.

Minnesota 99, Sacramento 91--Kevin Garnett scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the Timberwolves beat the Kings in their home opener at Minneapolis.

Garnett is averaging 29.0 points and 13.4 rebounds in his past five games against the Kings, dating to last season’s opener in Tokyo.

In the second quarter, Garnett followed a one-handed rebound of a missed shot by Terrell Brandon with a windmill dunk. He then flashed two fingers and pointed to the sky in a tribute to late teammate Malik Sealy.

A 15-minute tribute to Sealy, who was killed in an automobile accident last May, preceded the game. Sealy’s No. 2 jersey was the first in club history to be retired.

Charlotte 98, New Jersey 87--David Wesley scored 30 points and the Hornets withstood a torrid-shooting first quarter by the Nets in the victory at East Rutherford, N.J.

Baron Davis added 20 points and Otis Thorpe, who had two points in 36 minutes in the Hornets’ first three games, had six of his eight when Charlotte took control in winning for the third time in four games.

Indiana 94, Chicago 81--Travis Best scored 25 points and Reggie Miller had 20 after hitting three three-pointers in the final two minutes at Indianapolis as the Pacers gave new Coach Isiah Thomas his first victory.

The Pacers lost their first two games on the road, but took control in the second quarter, built a nine-point lead after the third period and pulled away in the closing minutes as Miller started hitting from the outside.

Toronto 103, Washington 96--Vince Carter had 34 points at Toronto to help the Raptors end a three-game skid to begin the season.

Carter, who had 12 first-quarter points, was 10 of 22 and a perfect 12 of 12 from the line. Backup guard Alvin Williams scored a career-high 22 points, 18 in the fourth quarter, as the Raptors ended the worst start in their six-year history.

Utah 112, Dallas 106--Karl Malone scored 33 points at Dallas, including 14 in the fourth quarter, as the Jazz held off a rally to hand the Mavericks their first loss.

The Mavericks, off to a 2-0 start for the first time since the 1997-98 season, took a 93-89 lead on Howard Eisley’s three-pointer midway through the fourth quarter. But the Jazz made the most of free throw opportunities to get the lead back.

Phoenix 102, Denver 99--Ruben Garces tipped in a missed layup by Jason Kidd with 17 seconds remaining to cap a furious fourth-quarter rally as the Suns beat the Nuggets at Denver.

The Suns, who overcame 25 turnovers, trailed by 15 points with less than four minutes remaining, but Kidd scored 10 of Phoenix’s final 18 points to lead the comeback. Kidd finished with 22 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, and Shawn Marion added 21 points for the Suns.

San Antonio 117, Golden State 105--Malik Rose scored a career-high 26 points and had 11 rebounds as the Spurs won at Oakland.

Tim Duncan, who had 16 points and 13 rebounds, recorded his 156th career double-double in 208 games. Antawn Jamison scored 32 points to lead the Warriors, who have lost nine in a row to San Antonio.

Cleveland 91, Boston 89--Andre Miller scored four points in the final 1:33 to help the Cavaliers remain undefeated with the victory at Cleveland.

Antoine Walker scored 25 points for Boston, which overcame a 19-point deficit before Miller bailed out the Cavaliers.

Milwaukee 97, Detroit 88--With Ray Allen in early foul trouble, Lindsay Hunter came off the bench and had 15 points, six rebounds and four assists as the Bucks defeated the Pistons at Milwaukee.