No Howard; no problem

Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla.

There have been times this season when then Orlando Magic have allowed teams to get back into games by erasing their big leads.

Usually, they’ve been able to lean on All-Star center Dwight Howard to get them through their jagged moments.

The Magic ran into another one against Cleveland, but did just fine without him this time in beating the Cavaliers 93-80 on Friday night.

Ryan Anderson scored 17 points and Howard added 16 points and 13 rebounds to lead the way. All five starters scored in double figures as the Magic sizzled shooting the ball early, improving to 18-3 when that occurs.

Anderson said crisp ball movement put Orlando in good position at the right times against the Cavs.

“This is when we can play the best and I think our defense really translated well on the offensive end,” he said. “We got some easy buckets on the other end.”

With just about a month to go in the season, Anderson said that the playoffs are already on the minds of the Magic players.

Antawn Jamison scored 16 points and had nine rebounds to lead Cleveland. Tristan Thompson added 15 points and 11 boards, and Kyrie Irving had 13 points.

The Cavs lost for the fifth time in six games.

Cleveland had a healthy Anderson Varejao at center when they lost to Orlando by eight back on Feb. 3. Howard was held to a modest 19 points, while Varejao kept his team close with a double-double.