Orlando, FL – Orlando, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Kenneth Faried scored 16 of his 26 points during two key runs and the Denver Nuggets held on to beat the Orlando Magic 120-112 on Wednesday night.
Wilson Chandler added 21 points and 10 rebounds for Denver, J.J. Hickson scored 20 off the bench and Ty Lawson had 17 points and 12 assists.
The Nuggets picked up their first win on a five-game road trip against mostly Eastern Conference teams after losses to New Orleans and Charlotte.
They snapped a four-game road losing streak, winning for just the second time in their last 10 away from Pepsi Center, and moved to 4-13 since Feb. 7.
"We just didn't want to go to Miami 0-3," Chandler said, looking forward to Friday's game against the Heat. "So we picked ourselves up. When we play defense our offense clicks."
Arron Afflalo scored 24 points to lead the Magic, who have lost four in a row. Nikola Vucevic added 20 points and 16 rebounds -- most in the first quarter -- and Jameer Nelson scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half.
Just 19-47 overall this season, the Magic have been miles better in their own building than on the road. Wednesday marked their third loss in their last 10 games at Amway Center.
The Nuggets fell behind by 13 in the second quarter but outscored the Magic 25-10 in the last eight minutes of the first half to take a 52-50 lead.
Darrell Arthur provided the spark with six points early in the extended run, Chandler hit a tying 3-pointer later and Faried led the way with seven points.
After Lawson hit a 3-pointer to put an end to a Magic run early in the third quarter, Faried and Chandler outscored Orlando 16-4 in a 3 1/2-minute span to give the Nuggets a 10-point lead.
Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said his guys had a hard time keeping the ball out of Faried and Chandler's hands. Denver outscored Orlando 54-40 down low.
"Their bigs were really effective at getting the ball in the paint and scoring," he said.
The Nuggets took an 85-74 lead into the fourth and held on despite Orlando's 38-point quarter. The Magic got as close as five points twice but Aaron Brooks hit a 3-pointer for Denver the first time and responded with a layup at the other end the second time.
Earlier, Vucevic had 12 points and seven rebounds in the first quarter and the Magic went up by as many as eight on the way to a 27-23 lead heading into the second.
Game Notes
The Nuggets swept the two-game season series for the second time in three years. They are the only season sweeps either team has had in the series since 2002-03 ... The Magic made all 13 of their foul shots ... Orlando remains home to play Washington on Friday.
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