Fast Break NBA News: NBA Playoffs 2010 : Charlotte Bobcats 89 @ 98 Orlando Magic (0

Nelson the hero in Game 1 win for Orlando

By Dick Scanlon, for NBA.com

ORLANDO (NBA.com exclusive) -- The best playoff game of Jameer Nelson's career helped the Orlando Magic survive a shaky second half Sunday night and hold off the Charlotte Hornets, 98-89, in their playoff opener.

Nelson came through with 32 points and six assists and hit six straight free throws in the final 1:04, offsetting the foul trouble of Dwight Howard and the troubled shooting (4-for-19) of Vince Carter.

Playing their first playoff game ever, the Bobcats fell 22 points behind early in the second half before rallying behind Gerald Wallace and Raymond Felton. Two free throws by Felton got Charlotte as close as four with 3:51 left.

"We came out a little nervous and they took advantage," said Wallace, who had 25 points and 17 rebounds. "They knew we were back on our heels and they came and attacked and made shots and put the pressure on us.

"They left it up to us to try to fight back into the game."

They might have made it all the way back if not for two "huge plays" cited by coach Larry Brown as the shots that killed the Bobcats -- 3-pointers by J.J. Redick and Mickael Pietrus. The off-balance shot by Pietrus put the Magic up by eight with 1:24 left.

The Bobcats' chances were also dealt a blow by a knee injury to Stephen Jackson, who played less than three minutes of the fourth quarter.

"I played through the whole third and played through the pain," said Jackson, who finished with 18 points and nine rebounds after a halftime diagnosis of a hyperextended left knee. "I know coach was looking out for me and didn't want me to get hurt, but I was fine . . . he knows how bad I want to play and be out there. It is over and done with."

Jackson said he will definitely play in Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Nelson, held out of the first three playoffs rounds by a torn labrum last year, dropped 14 points on the Bobcats in the first quarter and ended the first half with a buzzer-beating 35-foot bomb, giving the Magic a 59-43 lead.

"When I'm in an attack mode, we're pretty good offensively," Nelson said. "I just try to come out big and set the tone, whether it's shooting the ball like I did in the first half or just finding open guys. It just so happened that they were (double-teaming) Dwight and kind of left me open a lot in the first and second quarter."

If Nelson had his best playoff game, Howard had one of the strangest.

The NBA's leading rebounder and shot-blocker, Howard blocked seven of the Bobcats' first 23 shots and had eight blocks at halftime, only two short of the NBA playoff record.

But after the Magic stretched their lead to 22 points early in the second half, they went scoreless for a four-minute stretch that included Howard going to the bench with his fourth foul at 7:57 of the third quarter.

"That's why you get that 20-point lead," Nelson said, "just in case something like that happens."

The Magic were hanging on from that point, and Howard finished the game with only five points, seven rebounds and nine blocks.

"I knew it was going to be tough for me on the offensive end because of the way they were swarming and not letting me catch," Howard said. "I want to be able to change games on the defensive end. That's what wins.

"I kept telling our guys we have to step up our defensive game and not worry about offense. When we don't worry about offense and just worry about the defensive end, I think we're a pretty good team."

The Bobcats got them out of their game completely for long stretches of the second half, but they couldn't make up that big lead.

"We had to grind it out. After the first quarter our offense got a little bogged down, but we made enough plays," said Redick, who made two of the Magic's 13 3-pointers. "That's the type of team they are, capable of making runs. They're so good defensively that during a game, you're going to go through a stretch where you get locked down. During those stretches, you've got to get stops yourself."

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said he'll take it.

"We've got to adjust to a much more intense, much more physical defense," he said. "I think it's good that we got out with the win and experienced their defense and the way they're playing."

Charlotte Bobcats (44-38)
field goalsrebounds
	pos	min	fgm-a	3pm-a	ftm-a	+/-	off	def	tot	ast	pf	st	to	bs	ba	pts
G. Wallace	F	42:32	8-13	0-0	9-13	-3	1	16	17	2	2	0	0	1	0	25
B. Diaw	F	43:14	3-6	0-2	0-0	-12	1	3	4	2	4	0	2	2	1	6
T. Ratliff	C	18:01	2-3	0-0	1-2	+5	0	0	0	1	4	1	1	0	1	5
S. Jackson	G-F	33:46	6-18	0-3	6-7	-10	3	6	9	3	2	0	5	1	3	18
R. Felton	G	35:06	7-14	2-4	3-4	-10	1	2	3	4	0	0	2	0	4	19
N. Mohammed		08:01	1-4	0-0	0-0	-14	1	0	1	1	3	0	0	0	0	2
T. Chandler		14:28	1-4	0-0	0-0	+12	2	1	3	2	2	2	1	1	0	2
D. Augustin		16:38	1-3	0-1	0-0	+1	0	0	0	2	1	0	1	0	0	2
T. Thomas		08:01	2-2	0-0	0-0	-5	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	4
L. Hughes		20:14	2-4	1-2	1-2	-9	0	3	3	2	4	0	2	0	1	6
D. Brown	DNP - Coach's Decision
S. Graham	DNP - Coach's Decision
Total		240	33-71	3-12	20-28		10	31	41	19	22	3	14	5	10	89
			46.5%	25.0%	71.4%		team rebs: 10			total to: 16

Orlando Magic (59-23)
field goalsrebounds
	pos	min	fgm-a	3pm-a	ftm-a	+/-	off	def	tot	ast	pf	st	to	bs	ba	pts
M. Barnes	F	21:05	0-2	0-0	2-2	+6	1	2	3	0	1	2	1	0	1	2
R. Lewis	F	38:33	8-11	3-5	0-0	+14	0	5	5	0	1	1	1	0	0	19
D. Howard	C	27:49	2-4	0-0	1-6	+9	4	3	7	1	5	1	2	9	0	5
V. Carter	G-F	29:59	4-19	0-5	4-5	+4	0	3	3	1	6	0	0	0	0	12
J. Nelson	G	37:15	10-18	4-8	8-8	+14	0	4	4	6	3	1	2	0	2	32
R. Anderson		09:27	0-2	0-0	0-0	-5	1	2	3	1	2	1	0	0	1	0
M. Pietrus		25:53	4-7	4-7	2-4	+5	0	1	1	2	3	0	0	1	0	14
J. Williams		10:45	1-4	0-2	0-0	-5	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
M. Gortat		20:11	1-2	0-0	0-0	0	2	3	5	1	1	0	0	0	1	2
J. Redick		19:03	3-5	2-3	2-2	+3	0	2	2	1	2	0	1	0	0	10
B. Bass	DNP - Coach's Decision
A. Johnson	DNP - Coach's Decision
Total		240	33-74	13-30	19-27		8	26	34	13	24	6	7	10	5	98
			44.6%	43.3%	70.4%		team rebs: 10			total to: 9