The Magic were down, then Shaq attacked.
Shaquille O'Neal registered his first career triple double, scoring 24 points and adding career highs of 28 rebounds and 15 blocks Saturday night as the Orlando Magic beat the New Jersey Nets 87-85.Nick Anderson, who scored 25 points, tallied the final four points of the game as the Magic, which had lost two straight and four of five, rallied for the victory.
The Nets, who lost their third straight, had two chances to tie the game but Kenny Anderson's pull-up jumper in the lane was blocked by Anfernee Hardaway with 40 seconds to go and an 18-foot jumper by P.J. Brown with three seconds remaining hit the side of the rim.
O'Neal was 12-for-19 from the field and missed his only free throw. Ten of his rebounds were on the offensive end. His block total was just two shy of the NBA record set by Elmore Smith in 1973.
The Nets, who played the final 29 minutes without leading scorer Derrick Coleman who sprained his right ankle, got season highs of 25 points and 16 rebounds from Gilliam.
At halftime, with the Magic trailing 45-39, O'Neal's numbers were an unimpressive six points, eight rebounds and six blocks.
But sensing the urgency to pick up a victory, O'Neal stepped up his game in the second half.
"In the first half both teams were missing a lot of shots," he said. "In the second half I tried to get more active and get more blocks and putbacks.
"I guess I played OK," said O'Neal who was nursing a cold.
Pacers 100, Celtics 94
At Indianapolis, Pooh Richardson scored a career-high 24 points and Dale Davis posted career bests of 21 points and 22 rebounds as the Indiana Pacers held off Boston.
Hawks 96, Hornets 91
At Atlanta, Dominique Wilkins scored 32 points and Kevin Willis added 23, including two key baskets in the closing minutes, to pace Atlanta to its fourth straight victory.
Stacey Augmon contributed 19 points and point guard Mookie Blaylock had nine points, 12 assists and a team-high 13 rebounds for the Hawks.
Bullets 104, Heat 102
At Baltimore, Kevin Duckworth, enduring a 1-for-7 shooting night, converted a three-point play with 5.1 seconds remaining to lift the Washington Bullets to a victory over the Miami Heat at the Baltimore Arena.
Tom Gugliotta scored 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bullets, who have won three of their last four.
Nuggets 90, Timberwolves 89
At Minneapolis, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf's jumper from just inside the 3-point line with 5.2 seconds left lifted the Denver Nuggets to a 90-89 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Abdul-Rauf and Bryant Stith scored 22 points each for the Nuggets, who scored the final five points of the game.
Rockets 108, Clippers 86
At Houston, Hakeem Olajuwon scored 22 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as the Houston Rockets sprinted to a big early lead and beat the Los Angeles Clippers for a club-record ninth straight victory.
The Rockets became the 10th team in NBA history to open the season with a 9-0 record. The all-time season-opening record is 15-0 by Washington in 1948-49.
Suns 112, Cavaliers 96
At Phoenix, Charles Barkley had 28 points and 20 rebounds and Kevin Johnson scored 26 points as the Phoenix Suns ended a three-game losing streak to Cleveland, beating the Cavaliers.
Spurs 101, Bucks 97
At Milwaukee, David Robinson scored 31 points and Willie Anderson added a season-high 28 as the San Antonio Spurs beat Milwaukee, the Bucks' eighth straight defeat.
SuperSonics 112, Warriors 97
At Oakland, Calif., Shawn Kemp scored 28 points, all in the first three quarters, and six Seattle players scored in double figures as the Supersonics ran their record to 8-0 with a victory over the Golden State Warriors. Kemp, who played just 29 minutes, added 14 rebounds and made 14 of 15 free throws.