VanVleet has season-high 37 as Rockets get 118-106 win over Magic, who fall into tie for fourth
HOUSTON (AP) Fred VanVleet scored a season-high 37 points and the Houston Rockets snapped a five-game skid with a 118-106 victory over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.
The Magic fell into a tie for fourth place with Cleveland in the Eastern Conference. They came into the night with a chance to clinch the Southeast Division title with a win and a loss by the Miami Heat, but they couldn’t get it done against Houston and the Heat beat the Hawks 117-111 in double overtime.
“We can't hang our heads,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “We've got to come out and go after Milwaukee tomorrow. That's what it's got to be. Take the lessons from this one. Bounce back tomorrow.”
A basket by Markelle Fultz got the Magic within eight with about four minutes to go but VanVleet made a jump shot followed by a three-point play to make it 114-101 about a minute later to secure the victory.
Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs scored 21 points apiece for the Magic and Fultz added 18.
VanVleet made six 3-pointers and had eight rebounds and six assists. Jabari Smith Jr. added 23 points and Dillon Brooks had 15 as the Rockets played their last home game of the season.
“We wanted to continue to build and we know we're out of the race but we have four to go,” coach Ime Udoka said. “We don't want to just lay down and chalk it up... we fought hard and played well.”
The Magic scored the first nine points of the fourth quarter, with the last five from Joe Ingles, to cut the lead to 97-91 with about nine minutes to go.
Houston got its first points of the quarter on a 3-pointer by VanVleet, but Fultz made a layup seconds later.
The Rockets hadn't forgotten about the 116-86 loss they suffered to Orlando in their season opener.
“They kicked our butts the first game of the season,” VanVleet said. “We definitely remember that. So it was good to get some get back there.”
The Rockets led by 12 at halftime and opened the second half with an 11-4 run to make it 74-55 with nine minutes left in the third. Jalen Green had the first five points in that stretch and VanVleet added a 3-pointer.
Houston was up by 18 after another 3 from VanVleet later in the third quarter before the Magic went on a 10-4 run, with five points from Suggs, to get withing 90-78 with 3 ½ minutes left in the quarter.
Soon after that Ingles and Houston’s Cam Whitmore were both given technical fouls after bumping into one another and jawing at each other. Whitmore was ejected 14 seconds after that for arguing with an official after being called for a loose ball foul.
Ingles made two free throws but the Rockets outscored Orlando 5-2 to close out the quarter and take a 97-82 lead into the fourth quarter.
UP NEXT
Magic: Visit Milwaukee Wednesday night.
Rockets: Visit Utah Thursday night.
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| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 |  | Wendell Carter Jr. vs. Jabari Smith Jr. (Markelle Fultz gains possession) | ||
| 11:44 |  | Paolo Banchero misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 11:42 | | Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 11:25 | | Fred VanVleet turnover (bad pass) (Gary Harris steals) | ||
| 11:14 | | Markelle Fultz misses two point fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 11:11 | | Wendell Carter Jr. offensive rebound | ||
| 11:10 | | +2 | Wendell Carter Jr. makes two point putback layup | 2-0 |
| 10:59 | | +3 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes three point pullup jump shot (Jalen Green assists) | 2-3 |
| 10:45 | | +3 | Gary Harris makes three point stepback jump shot | 5-3 |
| 10:26 | | Jalen Green misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 10:25 | | Jalen Suggs defensive rebound | ||
| 10:16 | | +3 | Jalen Suggs makes three point jump shot (Paolo Banchero assists) | 8-3 |
| 9:59 | | +2 | Jalen Green makes two point driving layup (Fred VanVleet assists) | 8-5 |
| 9:38 | | +2 | Markelle Fultz makes two point driving reverse layup (Paolo Banchero assists) | 10-5 |
| 9:35 | | Rockets 60 second timeout | ||
| 9:22 | | +2 | Dillon Brooks makes two point pullup jump shot (Amen Thompson assists) | 10-7 |
| 9:03 | | Paolo Banchero misses two point driving layup | ||
| 9:03 | | Amen Thompson defensive rebound | ||
| 8:53 | | +2 | Fred VanVleet makes two point driving reverse layup (Dillon Brooks assists) | 10-9 |
| 8:37 | | Fred VanVleet shooting foul (Jalen Suggs draws the foul) | ||
| 8:37 | | +1 | Jalen Suggs makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 11-9 |
| 8:37 | | +1 | Jalen Suggs makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 12-9 |
| 8:23 | | Amen Thompson misses two point driving finger roll layup | ||
| 8:21 | | Amen Thompson offensive rebound | ||
| 8:20 | | +2 | Amen Thompson makes two point putback layup | 12-11 |
| 8:15 | | Jalen Suggs misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 8:13 | | Fred VanVleet defensive rebound | ||
| 8:06 | | +2 | Fred VanVleet makes two point running finger roll layup (Dillon Brooks assists) | 12-13 |
| 7:51 | | Paolo Banchero turnover (lost ball) (Amen Thompson steals) | ||
| 7:45 | | Jabari Smith Jr. misses two point running finger roll layup | ||
| 7:44 | | Wendell Carter Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 7:32 | | Dillon Brooks personal foul (Wendell Carter Jr. draws the foul) | ||
| 7:26 | | Wendell Carter Jr. misses two point driving bank hook shot | ||
| 7:25 | | Fred VanVleet defensive rebound | ||
| 7:10 | | Jabari Smith Jr. misses three point jump shot | ||
| 7:09 | | Wendell Carter Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 7:01 | | Jabari Smith Jr. blocks Jalen Suggs's two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 7:00 | | Dillon Brooks defensive rebound | ||
| 6:53 | | +2 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes two point cutting layup (Dillon Brooks assists) | 12-15 |
| 6:27 | | Wendell Carter Jr. turnover (lost ball) (Amen Thompson steals) | ||
| 6:19 | | +2 | Fred VanVleet makes two point driving reverse layup (Jabari Smith Jr. assists) | 12-17 |
| 6:19 | | Magic 60 second timeout | ||
| 5:59 | | Paolo Banchero misses three point jump shot | ||
| 5:56 | | Fred VanVleet defensive rebound | ||
| 5:48 | | Dillon Brooks misses two point driving layup | ||
| 5:48 | | Gary Harris defensive rebound | ||
| 5:40 | | +2 | Markelle Fultz makes two point running reverse layup (Jalen Suggs assists) | 14-17 |
| 5:23 | | +3 | Fred VanVleet makes three point jump shot (Amen Thompson assists) | 14-20 |
| 5:10 | | +3 | Wendell Carter Jr. makes three point jump shot (Markelle Fultz assists) | 17-20 |
| 4:49 | | +2 | Jock Landale makes two point turnaround hook shot (Jalen Green assists) | 17-22 |
| 4:34 | | Markelle Fultz misses two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 4:33 | | Markelle Fultz offensive rebound | ||
| 4:26 | | Markelle Fultz misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 4:25 | | Amen Thompson defensive rebound | ||
| 4:07 | | +3 | Fred VanVleet makes three point jump shot (Jock Landale assists) | 17-25 |
| 3:46 | | Jalen Suggs turnover (bad pass) (Jock Landale steals) | ||
| 3:44 | | Jalen Suggs blocks Fred VanVleet's two point running layup | ||
| 3:43 | | Markelle Fultz defensive rebound | ||
| 3:41 | | Markelle Fultz turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 3:40 | | Dillon Brooks misses two point cutting layup | ||
| 3:39 | | Paolo Banchero defensive rebound | ||
| 3:32 | | +2 | Jalen Suggs makes two point running layup (Paolo Banchero assists) | 19-25 |
| 3:19 | | +3 | Jalen Green makes three point pullup jump shot | 19-28 |
| 3:03 | | Fred VanVleet blocks Paolo Banchero's two point driving layup | ||
| 3:03 | | Rockets defensive rebound | ||
| 2:43 | | Fred VanVleet misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 2:43 | | Jonathan Isaac defensive rebound | ||
| 2:33 | | Jabari Smith Jr. shooting foul (Paolo Banchero draws the foul) | ||
| 2:33 | | +1 | Paolo Banchero makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 20-28 |
| 2:33 | | +1 | Paolo Banchero makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 21-28 |
| 2:18 | | Cole Anthony personal foul (Fred VanVleet draws the foul) | ||
| 2:05 | | +3 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes three point stepback jump shot (Jock Landale assists) | 21-31 |
| 1:49 | | Jonathan Isaac misses three point jump shot | ||
| 1:48 | | Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 1:39 | | +2 | Jock Landale makes two point turnaround hook shot | 21-33 |
| 1:25 | | +2 | Jonathan Isaac makes two point jump shot (Paolo Banchero assists) | 23-33 |
| 1:13 | | Cam Whitmore misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 1:11 | | Paolo Banchero defensive rebound | ||
| 0:58 | | Paolo Banchero misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:56 | | Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 0:42 | | +2 | Fred VanVleet makes two point pullup jump shot (Jabari Smith Jr. assists) | 23-35 |
| 0:26 | | Paolo Banchero turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 0:07 | | Cole Anthony shooting foul (Fred VanVleet draws the foul) | ||
| 0:07 | | Fred VanVleet misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 0:07 | | Rockets offensive rebound | ||
| 0:07 | | +1 | Fred VanVleet makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 23-36 |
| 0:01 | | +2 | Cole Anthony makes two point driving layup | 25-36 |
| 0:00 | | Cam Whitmore misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:00 | | Rockets offensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |
| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:48 | | Amen Thompson turnover (lost ball) (Caleb Houstan steals) | ||
| 11:34 | | +3 | Jonathan Isaac makes three point jump shot (Moritz Wagner assists) | 28-36 |
| 11:23 | | Cam Whitmore misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 11:22 | | Jonathan Isaac defensive rebound | ||
| 11:08 | | +2 | Jonathan Isaac makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot (Cole Anthony assists) | 30-36 |
| 10:53 | | Jabari Smith Jr. misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 10:52 | | Rockets offensive rebound | ||
| 10:37 | | Jabari Smith Jr. turnover (bad pass) (Cole Anthony steals) | ||
| 10:29 | | Cole Anthony misses two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 10:28 | | Moritz Wagner offensive rebound | ||
| 10:27 | | Amen Thompson personal foul (Moritz Wagner draws the foul) | ||
| 10:23 | | Cam Whitmore shooting foul (Moritz Wagner draws the foul) | ||
| 10:23 | | +1 | Moritz Wagner makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 31-36 |
| 10:23 | | +1 | Moritz Wagner makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 32-36 |
| 10:11 | | +2 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes two point driving finger roll layup (Jeff Green assists) | 32-38 |
| 9:52 | | +2 | Moritz Wagner makes two point cutting layup (Jonathan Isaac assists) | 34-38 |
| 9:51 | | Rockets 60 second timeout | ||
| 9:40 | | +2 | Jeff Green makes two point cutting layup (Jalen Green assists) | 34-40 |
| 9:26 | | +2 | Moritz Wagner makes two point driving layup (Joe Ingles assists) | 36-40 |
| 9:11 | | Jabari Smith Jr. misses two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 9:10 | | Joe Ingles defensive rebound | ||
| 8:58 | | Cole Anthony misses two point turnaround fadeaway bank jump shot | ||
| 8:57 | | Jeff Green defensive rebound | ||
| 8:43 | | Jonathan Isaac blocks Jeff Green's two point driving layup | ||
| 8:42 | | Jeff Green offensive rebound | ||
| 8:42 | | Jonathan Isaac shooting foul (Jeff Green draws the foul) | ||
| 8:42 | | +1 | Jeff Green makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 36-41 |
| 8:42 | | +1 | Jeff Green makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 36-42 |
| 8:23 | | Jonathan Isaac turnover (lost ball) (Reggie Bullock Jr. steals) | ||
| 8:16 | | +2 | Jeff Green makes two point running layup (Jabari Smith Jr. assists) | 36-44 |
| 8:08 | | Joe Ingles misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 8:08 | | Jalen Green defensive rebound | ||
| 7:59 | | +2 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes two point pullup jump shot | 36-46 |
| 7:58 | | Magic 60 second timeout | ||
| 7:48 | | Dillon Brooks personal foul (Moritz Wagner draws the foul) | ||
| 7:35 | | Paolo Banchero turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 7:24 | | Jalen Green misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 7:23 | | Paolo Banchero defensive rebound | ||
| 7:13 | | Paolo Banchero turnover (lost ball) (Jalen Green steals) | ||
| 7:03 | | Jalen Green misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 7:01 | | Joe Ingles defensive rebound | ||
| 6:51 | | Jalen Suggs misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 6:49 | | Dillon Brooks defensive rebound | ||
| 6:45 | | Jalen Green misses two point running alley-oop layup | ||
| 6:43 | | Joe Ingles defensive rebound | ||
| 6:39 | | Jalen Suggs misses three point running jump shot | ||
| 6:35 | | Jabari Smith Jr. defensive rebound | ||
| 6:22 | | Jalen Green misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 6:20 | | Gary Harris defensive rebound | ||
| 6:07 | | +3 | Gary Harris makes three point jump shot (Jalen Suggs assists) | 39-46 |
| 5:49 | | +3 | Dillon Brooks makes three point pullup jump shot (Jabari Smith Jr. assists) | 39-49 |
| 5:32 | | +2 | Paolo Banchero makes two point fadeaway jump shot | 41-49 |
| 5:17 | | Jock Landale misses three point jump shot | ||
| 5:16 | | Jalen Suggs defensive rebound | ||
| 5:09 | | Jock Landale blocks Markelle Fultz's two point running reverse layup | ||
| 5:08 | | Jock Landale defensive rebound | ||
| 5:03 | | +2 | Jalen Green makes two point running dunk | 41-51 |
| 4:43 | | Jalen Suggs misses three point jump shot | ||
| 4:39 | | Jalen Green defensive rebound | ||
| 4:35 | | Wendell Carter Jr. shooting foul (Jalen Green draws the foul) | ||
| 4:35 | | Jalen Green misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 4:35 | | Rockets offensive rebound | ||
| 4:35 | | Jalen Green misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 4:35 | | Paolo Banchero defensive rebound | ||
| 4:12 | | Markelle Fultz misses two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 4:10 | | Jalen Green defensive rebound | ||
| 4:00 | | +3 | Jock Landale makes three point jump shot (Jalen Green assists) | 41-54 |
| 3:44 | | Paolo Banchero misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 3:43 | | Gary Harris offensive rebound | ||
| 3:30 | | +2 | Paolo Banchero makes two point fadeaway jump shot (Markelle Fultz assists) | 43-54 |
| 3:10 | | Jalen Green turnover (lost ball) (Wendell Carter Jr. steals) | ||
| 2:53 | | Wendell Carter Jr. misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:53 | | Dillon Brooks defensive rebound | ||
| 2:43 | | Fred VanVleet misses two point fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 2:43 | | Amen Thompson offensive rebound | ||
| 2:39 | | +2 | Amen Thompson makes two point putback layup | 43-56 |
| 2:25 | | Paolo Banchero misses two point driving floating bank jump shot | ||
| 2:24 | | Dillon Brooks defensive rebound | ||
| 2:21 | | Gary Harris shooting foul (Fred VanVleet draws the foul) | ||
| 2:21 | | +1 | Fred VanVleet makes regular free throw 1 of 3 | 43-57 |
| 2:21 | | +1 | Fred VanVleet makes regular free throw 2 of 3 | 43-58 |
| 2:21 | | +1 | Fred VanVleet makes regular free throw 3 of 3 | 43-59 |
| 2:09 | | Fred VanVleet personal foul (Jalen Suggs draws the foul) | ||
| 2:00 | | Paolo Banchero misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 1:56 | | Rockets defensive rebound | ||
| 1:43 | | Fred VanVleet turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 1:22 | | +2 | Paolo Banchero makes two point fadeaway jump shot (Jalen Suggs assists) | 45-59 |
| 1:00 | | +2 | Amen Thompson makes two point driving finger roll layup (Fred VanVleet assists) | 45-61 |
| 0:52 | | +2 | Markelle Fultz makes two point pullup bank jump shot | 47-61 |
| 0:40 | | +2 | Jabari Smith Jr. makes two point pullup jump shot (Fred VanVleet assists) | 47-63 |
| 0:28 | | +2 | Paolo Banchero makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | 49-63 |
| 0:04 | | Jalen Green misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:03 | | Paolo Banchero defensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | +2 | Jalen Suggs makes two point running finger roll layup (Paolo Banchero assists) | 51-63 |
| 0:00 | | End of period |