ORLANDO, Fla.— During the Magic’s recent struggles one of the few constants has been the offense
provided by Arron Afflalo.The veteran provided another reminder of why he’s so indispensable for a young
team trying to find itself.Afflalo scored 23 points to lead five Orlando players in double-figures and the
Magic snapped a three-game losing streak with a 109-92 win over the Detroit Pistons on Friday night.Orlando
led the Pistons by as many as 22 points and cruised in the fourth quarter. Afflalo said the victory was one
of the most complete efforts the Magic have posted in recent memory.The victory halted a five-game home
losing streak for the Magic, who hadn’t won at the Amway Center since the day before Thanksgiving.Nik
Vucevic added 20 points and 11 rebounds, and rookie Victor Oladipo finished with 16 points and a career-high
11 assists.Magic coach Jacque Vaughn thought Friday’s effort was sparked by what he called a surprisingly
“intense” practice for this time of year.“That has to be our signature — we have to come to work,” he said.
“I always tell them I don’t know what results that’s going to lead to wins and losses-wise, but you can look
yourself in the mirror and appreciate what you do for a living, and your teammates appreciate you when you
come to work.”Brandon Jennings had 21 points and Will Bynum added 18 for the Pistons, who had a streak of
three consecutive road victories ended.“From the start of the game, we just couldn’t get anything going. We
got a couple stops in the third quarter, but we couldn’t score, and it just kept going downhill from there,”
Pistons coach Maurice Cheeks said. “We couldn’t get anything going offensively, they pushed the ball down
our throat defensively, and then we didn’t make any shots.”The Pistons, who claimed eight of their 14 wins
on the road, never found a flow on offense. They shot 41 percent for the game, and were outscored in the
paint 58-48.“We had no sense of urgency and we didn’t muster energy at all tonight,” Jennings said. “It’s
got to be a collective unit to try to get it back together, but we didn’t have it tonight.”In some of their
recent losses Orlando had started fast, only to fall apart late in the games.The Magic jumped out to another
early lead, but this time were able to sustain it with a variety of scoring bursts that kept the Pistons
playing catch up for most of the night.Afflalo said there’s no secret to what it will take for the Magic to
have another “good night” like Friday.“Just get after it, man. There’s no mystery,” he said. “We know what
we need to do — same focus, same effort. It starts with our preparation in shootaround, our intensity,
attention to detail. And keeping our foot on the gas pedal.”