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Vucevic's triple-double helps Magic rally past Warriors

Fernando Medina / National Basketball Association / Getty

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Nikola Vucevic had 30 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists for his third career triple-double and the Orlando Magic overcame a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Golden State Warriors 124-120 on Friday night.

Vucevic made two free throws with 16 seconds left to put Orlando ahead 123-120 after Warriors star Stephen Curry hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the final minute.

Curry missed an off-balance 3-pointer from 27 feet with five seconds left that could have tied it. He finished with 29 points, 11 assists and six rebounds. Golden State was trying to win three straight games for the first time this season, but failed to get past two in a row for the seventh time.

Orlando led by 13 at halftime and by as much as 17 in the third quarter, before Golden State unleashed a 52-22 run over a 12-minute stretch of the second half to surge ahead 106-93. The Magic dominated the final eight minutes, getting two clutch 3-pointers from rookie Chuma Okake.

Evan Fournier scored a season-high 28 points for Orlando, and Terrence Ross had 24 points and four 3-pointers. Okeke had all 11 of his points and three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.

Kelly Oubre Jr. added 26 points for Golden State, and Andrew Wiggins had 16. Draymond Green had six points, nine assists and six rebounds in 34 minutes.

CURRY COMPARISONS

Even though he’s already a two-time MVP, Curry is making a strong case for playing as well this season as he has at any point in his career. Coach Steve Kerr said that while this season differs from Golden State’s recent three championship runs, Curry has impressed with the completeness of his play.

“He’s playing as well as he ever has,” Kerr said of Curry, who entered Friday averaging 35 points a game on 55% shooting in February. “We’re not as good as he was during his two MVP seasons, but we’re a young team that’s growing. He’s continuing to perform at the highest level and bringing along a young team. That’s pretty significant.”

TIP INS

Warriors: Green was back in the starting lineup after missing the previous game with ankle soreness. Kerr admitted to being worried about rustiness for Green after the Warriors didn’t practice on Thursday or Friday morning. … Kerr said James Wiseman has already been ruled out for Saturday. It will be the 11th straight game the rookie has missed since spraining his left wrist.

Magic: Gus Malzahn, who was hired by UCF as their head football coach on Monday, attended the game. He shown on the video board and received a rousing ovation. … Vucevic had the highlight of the night when he drove hard to the rim and dunked with authority over Green.

UP NEXT

Warriors: At Charlotte on Saturday night.

Magic: Host Detroit on Sunday night.

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