ORLANDO, Fla. — Reserve guard Evan Fournier scored 24 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, to lead the Orlando Magic to a 119-114 victory over the Boston Celtics on Sunday night.
The Magic (21-25) snapped an eight-game losing streak and won just their second game in January.
The Magic were balanced with six players in double-figure scoring. Aaron Gordon scored 19 points and had a career-high 13 rebounds, rookie swingman Mario Hezonja had a career-high 17 points, forward Tobias Harris had 16 points, center Nikola Vucevic scored 16 points with grabbed 13 rebounds and guard Victor Oladipo contributed 11 points.
Celtics reserve guard Marcus Smart led everyone with 26 points, including six points in the last 19 seconds that kept it close. Guard Isaiah Thomas had 23 points and guard Avery Bradley added 22 points. Forward Amir Johnson had eight points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
The Magic kept it close by missing six free throws in the final minute when the Celtics (27-22) made a late charge.
Celtics reserve guard Evan Turner was ejected with 1:01 remaining after getting back-to-back technical fouls for arguing a foul call.
Fournier hit a 3-pointer with 5:18 remaining for the Magic’s first lead in the fourth quarter. Hezonja followed with another 3-pointer for the 99-95 lead. The Magic never lost the lead.
The Celtics used a 9-0 burst early in the third quarter to build a 67-54 lead. Thomas hit a 3-pointer for the 70-56 lead, matching their biggest lead of the game. The Magic countered, though, with an 18-3 run to grab their first lead with 3:02 left in the third.
It was tied at 81 going into the final period.
The Celtics led 54-47 at intermission, riding their early hot shooting while capitalizing upon Magic mistakes.
Thomas and Smart both had 11 points by halftime. Smart played four minutes in the first quarter and hit a trio of 3-pointers. Thomas hit four of his five shots in the first period for 11 points.
The Celtics made seven 3-pointers in that opening period. The Magic had 10 first-half turnovers. Hezonja led all scorers with 12 points by halftime.
The Celtics scored first and never trailed in the first half, leading by as many as 14 points in the second quarter.
NOTES: The Celtics just beat the Magic on Friday in Boston by 19 points, making this an unusual back-to-back meeting. … In the earlier meeting, the Celtics got 62 points from their reserves, including four players who finished in double figures. … Things have changed quickly for Magic coach Scott Skiles, who is feeling the heat already in his first year in Orlando. He was NBA Eastern Conference Coach of the Month in December when his team went 10-5. They were 1-12 in January going into Sunday, and he was taking much of the blame. “I have in the last five weeks failed to get my points across, obviously,” he said before the game. “We’ve got to be more organized.” F Channing Fry came to his defense, putting the blame elsewhere. “He shouldn’t have to coach effort,” Fry said. … Celtics reserve C Kelly Olynyk is having a turnaround season when it comes to his shooting. In his first two NBA seasons, Olynyk shot 35 percent from 3-point range. Now in his third NBA season, he is shooting 44 percent (64 of 144), fifth best in the league.