Slumping Magic stop off in Houston

The Magic are tied with New York for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, while the Rockets are No. 5 in the West.

Orlando attempts to get back on the winning track this evening. Ben Gordon scored 25 points on 7-of-17 from the floor, as the Bulls pounded the Magic, 100-76, at Amway Arena.

Dwight Howard posted 17 points and 14 rebounds in the loss to Chicago for the Magic, who have lost eight of their last 10 games overall. Jameer Nelson finished with 13 points, while Trevor Ariza scored 10 in defeat.

The Magic, who have dropped three in a row as the visitor, are 10-21 on the road this season. They will visit the Charlotte Bobcats on Monday.

On the injury front for Orlando, forward Hedo Turkoglu (nose) is questionable. He is averaging 12.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 54 games this season.

Houston wraps up a two-game homestand. On Friday, Tracy McGrady poured in 34 points and dished out five assists as the Rockets trounced the New Jersey Nets, 112-91, at the Toyota Center.

Yao Ming added 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Rockets, who have won two in a row. Rafer Alston finished with 12 points and six assists, while Chuck Hayes had 11 points in the victory.

The Rockets are 21-10 at home this season. They will visit Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns on Monday at US Airways Center.

This is the second and final meeting of the season between the squads. On February 25th, McGrady scored 34 points to lift the Rockets to a 97-93 win over Orlando at Amway Arena.

Orlando has lost four of its last six at Houston. The Rockets have won two in a row and eight of the last nine contests in the series.