Vince Carter burns former team with 24 points as Magic beat Raptors 104-96

Carter scores 24 as Magic beat Raptors 104-96

TORONTO — Vince Carter scored 24 points, Dwight Howard had 17 points and 12 rebounds and the Orlando Magic won their fifth straight game, 104-96 over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.

J.J. Redick had 19 points, Jason Williams had 16 and Rashard Lewis added 11 for the Magic, who have won eight of 10.

Chris Bosh scored 22 points, Jose Calderon had 16 and Hedo Turkoglu scored 12 for Toronto, which has lost four of five. The Raptors are 4-2 at home this season, with both defeats coming against the Magic.

Orlando used 17 3-pointers to beat Toronto 125-116 on Nov. 1 despite playing without Carter (left ankle), Rashard Lewis (suspension) and Mickael Pietrus (flulike symptoms).

Toronto’s Amir Johnson scored a season-high 14 points in this one while Andrea Bargnani fouled out with 11 points and nine rebounds.

Carter finished 9 for 24 from the field after going 2 for 11 in the first half.

With Howard and Carter already on the bench, things looked good for Toronto when Lewis also sat down after picking up his fifth foul at 10:27 of the fourth. Five seconds later, Turkoglu tied it at 80 with a pair of free throws.

But without their three leading scorers, the Magic didn’t fold. Redick and Williams hit back-to-back 3-pointers, Redick made a jumper and Ryan Anderson hit two free throws to give Orlando a 90-80 lead with 7:19 left.

Williams added another 3 before Carter and Howard returned with 6:05 remaining, but Toronto wasn’t done. Trailing by 13 after two Howard free throws, Jarrett Jack made a 3 from the corner before Johnson hit a layup, then put back Turkoglu’s miss to make it 97-91 with 2:32 left.

Carter made sure the Raptors didn’t get any closer, making two free throws and later hitting a jumper to keep Orlando’s lead secure.

Howard had yet to score when he was forced to the bench after picking up his second foul at 5:59 of the first. Bosh made both free throws to give Toronto a 13-12 lead, and finished with eight in the quarter as the Raptors led 28-22 after one.

Howard returned for the second and had eight points in the quarter as the Magic used an 18-5 run to erase a 10-point deficit. Carter didn’t take a shot in the quarter but Ryan Anderson’s 3-pointer from the corner with 1.6 seconds left gave Orlando a 50-49 lead at the half.

Howard headed back to the bench after picking up his fourth foul at 2:48 of the third. Johnson capped a 9-2 run with a three-point play to put the Raptors on top, but Carter made a jumper with 1.4 seconds left to tie it at 76 heading into the fourth.

Williams made his third straight start in place of point guard Jameer Nelson, who underwent left knee surgery last week and is expected to miss four to six weeks.

NOTES: Magic coach Stan van Gundy received a technical for arguing in the first and Howard got one for arguing in the third. … Toronto’s Antoine Wright (left ankle) sat for the fourth time in five games. … Raptors G Marco Belinelli (left groin) did not dress after injuring himself in Friday’s victory over Miami. … Bargnani started despite missing Saturday’s practice with flulike symptoms.