And obviously the way he can see the game and pass

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ORLANDO, Fla. -- One thing has remained consistent about Magic coach Jacque Vaughn whenever he is asked how he gauges improvement for his team. Its day to day and game by game, he says. Well, he can count Wednesday as one of the good days. Nik Vucevic had 21 points and 16 rebounds as the Orlando Magic beat the Philadelphia 76ers 105-94 to post back-to-back wins for the first time since early this month. "We needed it," Vaughn said. "We were all over the place...Just a lot of guys who were getting into the game who were ready to play and were playing unselfishly on both ends. "We need guys and were gonna continue to need guys throughout the course of the year," he said. Glen Davis added 19 points, and Arron Afflalo and Victor Oladipo each finished with 18. The Magic led by 15 points before fighting off several second-half surges by the Sixers, which they beat for 17th time in 20 meetings. The game was the first meeting between rookies Michael Carter-Williams and Oladipo, and both played big roles. Oladipo registered a season-high 42 minutes. Though both had their highlights, it was how Orlando played together down the stretch that stuck out more. The Magic saw their double-digit, first-half lead dwindled down to a point early in the third quarter. It was 85-83 when Afflalos three-point play gave Orlando a little breathing room with 6:49 to play in the game. The 76ers kept coming before Afflalo struck again and turned a Philadelphia turnover into a layup that made it 93-87. That was followed a few possessions later by a 3-pointer by Oladipo that put the Magic up 98-89 with three minutes remaining and ended the threat. "We had a pretty impressive win (Tuesday) night (at Atlanta)," Afflalo said. "We hadnt had the best track record of backing up good victories with solid, back-to-back victories on back-to-back nights. It got a little ugly there in the second and third quarters, but we showed a little mental toughness and got us a good victory." Thaddeus Young led Philadelphia with 26 points and Carter-Williams added 23. It was Youngs first game in a week after missing three games while dealing with a death in his family. "They did a good job tonight of keeping the lead," Young said. "Once they got it, wed make a run to take the lead and they would (answer with) five or six points. They just kept their foot on the gas and kept moving." 76ers coach Brett Brown said the plan going forward was to ease him back into things slowly following his absence. Young didnt start, but entered the game for the first time at the 7:42 mark of the first quarter and immediately started to make an impact. "I didnt want to start him; I didnt know how long I was going to play him," Brown said. "You just go by gut feeling and judgment, and it was clear right from the get-go that he had bounce, he had energy, he wanted to play. He was good. So he ended up with (29) minutes, which I would not have guessed at the start of the game." The 76ers have now lost two straight and six of seven. Despite the victory, the Magic continued to deal with the injuries on Wednesday. Point guard Jameer Nelson left the game in the second quarter and did not return after limping off with a sprained left foot. Also, after making his season debut Sunday against Phoenix, Magic forward Tobias Harris sat out his second straight game with soreness in his left ankle. Harris was supposed to make his first start of the season against Atlanta Tuesday night, but was scratched just before tip-off. The ankle has now kept him out of 14 of the Magics 15 games this season. It was 55-50 at halftime as the Magic -- riding Vucevics 17 points and 10 rebounds -- dominated the first 21 minutes of the first half and built a 15-point lead. He went right at Philadelphias Daniel Orton, and hit his first eight shots of the night. It nearly evaporated in the final three minutes of the half, though, as the Sixers closed with a 10-0 run that included eight points by Young. Vucevic said he hopes the win will help the Magic to begin to play with a lot more consistency. "We made improvements, but weve still got a ways to go," he said. "We cant have streaks when we lose four or five games in a row. Its hard to make up for those. So we gotta try to be more consistent. We cant win every game ... but we gotta try to play the way we played the last two games." NOTES: Referee Tre Maddox left the game in the first quarter with an ankle injury. ... Davis made his second start of the season and appeared in his fourth game of the year since missing the first 11 games of the season with a broken bone in his left foot. ... Sixers F Spencer Hawes missed his second straight game with soreness in his left knee. cheap jerseys . Whether starting or coming off the bench, Johnson has always accepted his role in stride, part of whats made him the Raptors unsung hero for the better part of the last three seasons. jerseys nfl cheap .4 million contract extension. Garbutt has a career-high 18 points with 10 goals and eight assists in 46 games this season. http://www.jerseysnflcheapchina.com/. LOUIS -- Duke forward Jabari Parker has won the Wayman Tisdale Award, presented by the U. cheap jerseys from china . Then Ryan Raburn came to the plate and did what he usually does against the Chicago White Sox. Raburn hit a tiebreaking single and David Murphy drove in four runs, leading the Indians to a 12-6 victory over the White Sox. nfl jerseys china . David Griffin was promoted from interim GM on Monday by owner Dan Gilbert. He says Irving was not consulted on Browns future and any insinuation that he pushed to have him fired is "patently false.ANAHEIM – Teemu Selanne wanted to do something nice for Sami Vatanen. His fellow Finn, 21 years his junior, had just arrived in Anaheim and was hoping to stick with the Ducks. The way Selanne saw it, if Vatanen was going to make it in southern California, he needed to have his own wheels. So the future Hall of Famer, an avid car collector, decided to lend Vatanen, a smooth-skating defenceman, one of his. A Mercedes CLK to be precise. "I havent seen it in a year-and-a-half," Selanne said with a chuckle. "I dont know if I like that car actually," Vatanen said with a big smile, "but its free." Selanne and Saku Koivu, another Finnish veteran, have mentored Vatanen, Anaheims fourth round pick in 2009, over the last couple of years. Koivu and his wife Hanna, for example, helped Vatanen get his apartment set up. "You can tell that both of them have taken Sami under their wing," said Ducks defenceman Ben Lovejoy. "Hes not even their little brother, hes sort of their son." Told of that statement, the 43-year-old Selanne doesnt miss a beat noting, "He could be." The groundwork laid by Selanne and Koivu paid dividends in the regular season as Vatanen was the third leading scorer among Ducks defencemen picking up 21 points in just 48 games. "Its a big thing," said Vatanen. "Ive been watching those guys for a while. It was fun to get a chance to play with them and its more fun even in the playoffs." Vatanen played in just nine of Anaheims final 32 regular-season games and started the playoffs in the minors with Norfolk in the American Hockey League. He was recalled in time for Game 3 of the series with the Los Angeles Kings making an immediate impact. Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau even went so far as to label the youngster the best player on the ice on either team on Thursday night. Vatanen didnt slow downn in his second career NHL playoff game on Saturday night, picking up his first post-season point, an assist on Ryan Getzlafs power play goal.dddddddddddd He was also on the ice for Devante Smith-Pellys goal earlier in the period. "Just some confidence on the back end," said Lovejoy when asked what Vatanen brings to the table. "Getting offence against the Kings is difficult and having another smart puck mover back there is only going to put our forwards in better position to create offence." It is the 5-foot-10, 183-pound Vatanens gutsy play, which impresses Selanne the most. "Hes a warrior out there," said Selanne. "Hes not the biggest guy out there, but he doesnt avoid the traffic. Hes putting himself in a situation where hes going to get hit and give hits. Its fun to watch when young guys and small guys can do that. And obviously the way he can see the game and pass. He can make a huge difference." Selanne is nearing the end of his decorated career and takes great pride in being able to help an up-and-coming Finnish player find his way. After all, it was Teppo Numminen who helped a young Selanne navigate some early-career growing pains in Winnipeg. "I remember how much he helped me and thats why I want to do my job as well. And its fun and you see how much they appreciate it and how life is easier when you have help here and there," Selanne said. "Thats what we have done for years. Its so much easier for a young guy when theres a countryman who wants to help and makes things easier and gets you settled down. Thats a very important part of our job." In a way, Selannes career has come full circle as he passes the torch to the next rising Finnish star on the Ducks. So, did Numminen lend Selanne a car back in the day? "Actually, I let him drive my car," Selanne said with a grin. Some things never change. ' ' '