Full Moon in Orlando last night - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

MavKikiNYC · 02-21-2004, 09:23 AM

I liked this note so much I had to move it up.

A fan was ejected in the game's waning seconds for attacking Orlando's mascot. After the fan got Stuff the Magic Dragon in a headlock, it took five shots with a stun gun to get the man under control, a team official said.

BTW, moderators don't carry stun guns, do they?

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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Tracy McGrady turned into a punter, earning an ejection that provided the kick in the pants the rest of the Orlando Magic needed.

McGrady was booted after twice kicking the ball into the stands, but Juwan Howard scored 24 points and Drew Gooden had 16 points and 12 rebounds to help Orlando to a 102-98 victory over Denver on Friday night.

Orlando, which was 0-8 this season when McGrady played less than 30 minutes, showed the same resiliency as the ball that rocketed off McGrady's foot.

"I guess it got us hyped up and amped up to go out there and play," Gooden said.

Gooden, with 10 points and six rebounds in the fourth quarter, posted his 14th double-double of the season and first since Jan. 2. His biggest basket came on a hook over Marcus Camby for a 95-92 lead with 45.6 seconds remaining.

On a night when he reached 10,000 career points, McGrady finished with 15 -- his fewest since going scoreless on Dec. 19 when he hurt his back in the first quarter.

"I could care less about 10,000 points," said McGrady, the second-youngest player to reach that milestone. "I was frustrated, so I had to get us going some way, whether it was getting a tech, getting ejected, kicking balls out of the arena. It didn't matter."

Carmelo Anthony scored 35 points, only four in the fourth quarter. Nene had 15, while Camby added 12 points and 20 rebounds. Denver had its three-game winning streak snapped.

McGrady stripped Anthony of the ball and drove the length of the court for a layup that would've brought the Magic within 58-57 entering the break. But the shot was swatted away by Chris Andersen, and the NBA's scoring leader ended up in a pile under the basket with a look of disbelief on his face.

McGrady got up, took the ball and punted it deep into the arena's lower bowl.

When a fan tossed the ball back on the court, it bounced right to McGrady. Teammate Juwan Howard rushed to stop him, but McGrady booted the ball again.

"Frustrated, man," McGrady said. "It was a lot of frustration built up, the whole season, built up in me. I just let it out."

Two technical fouls were assessed, and the ejection ended McGrady's streaks of 40-point games (two) and 20-point games (21).

Behind Gooden, the Magic's bench outscored the Nuggets' 44-17 and outrebounded them 37-4. Rod Strickland had 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

DeShawn Stevenson scored 10 points in his first game since being acquired from Utah for guard Gordan Giricek. Even Desmond Penigar, signed earlier in the day from the NBDL, contributed eight rebounds.

"Both DeShawn and Desmond played terrific defense, gave us some energy, played hard on the glass and made solid plays for us," coach Johnny Davis said.

Anthony, Nene and Camby scored all of the Nuggets' points in a 13-0 burst that put Denver ahead 15-3. The trio scored the Nuggets' first 22 points, making 10 of 13 shots.

But in the second quarter, the Magic made 14 of 21 shots until McGrady's final miss.

Game notes
The Magic's other trading deadline acquisition, center Sean Rooks, didn't arrive in time for the game. ... Denver also was missing a reserve center. Michael Doleac, claimed off waivers earlier in the day, had not yet joined the team. ... The youngest player to reach 10,000 career points is Kobe Bryant. ... Orlando center Steven Hunter sprained his right ankle midway through the first quarter. ...

Shaq Attack2 · 02-21-2004, 09:30 AM

Quote:

BTW, moderators don't carry stun guns, do they?

I hope not, I have a feeling LRB would end up being prosecuted by the state of Dallas by the end of the day.

[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

EDIT: I guess Tmac getting ejected was the best thing he's done in a while, it broke a long streak of losses for the Magic.

NYCdog · 02-21-2004, 11:39 AM

Quote:

I hope not, I have a feeling LRB would end up being prosecuted by the state of Dallas by the end of the day.

Call me silly but............I have a sneaky suspicion that LRB would get prosecuted by the State of Dallas.

Chiwas · 02-21-2004, 11:48 AM

Quote:

I guess Tmac getting ejected was the best thing he's done in a while, it broke a long streak of losses for the Magic.

Good point.

Quote:

I hope not, I have a feeling LRB would end up being prosecuted by the state of Dallas by the end of the day.

Yet better. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

bernardos70 · 02-21-2004, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by: MavKikiNYC
A fan was ejected in the game's waning seconds for attacking Orlando's mascot. After the fan got Stuff the Magic Dragon in a headlock, it took five shots with a stun gun to get the man under control, a team official said.

What an...... interesting name for their mascot, Stuff the Magic Dragon kinda rhymes with Puff the Magic Dragon which would explain why McGrady always has those half-open eyes, never fully open.....

MavKikiNYC · 02-21-2004, 01:43 PM

[quote]
Originally posted by: bernardos70

Quote:

Originally posted by: MavKikiNYC
A fan was ejected in the game's waning seconds for attacking Orlando's mascot. After the fan got Stuff the Magic Dragon in a headlock, it took five shots with a stun gun to get the man under control, a team official said.

I wonder if the security guards can bill the fan for electro-shock therapy procedures.

MavKikiNYC · 02-21-2004, 02:03 PM

Apparently this incident merited its own AP release.

Man Charged in Attack on Magic Mascot
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: February 21, 2004

Filed at 1:10 p.m. ET

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- A man who attacked the Orlando Magic's mascot was charged Saturday with battery, disorderly intoxication and resisting an officer without violence.

William Jeffrey Hawkins, 39, put Stuff the Magic Dragon in a chokehold in the waning moments of the Magic's 102-98 win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. Police were alerted, and it took three stun gun shots to get the 6-foot-2, 240-pound Hawkins under control to the point where he could be removed from his seat and dragged to the concourse, Orlando police Lt. John O'Grady said.

Orange County Jail records show Hawkins was booked early Saturday. His bail was set at $500, and he remained jailed.

``Stuff was nearly snuffed,'' O'Grady said.

O'Grady said Hawkins told authorities he could not remember what happened.

``He appeared to be pretty much intoxicated. He told us he had quite a few beers,'' O'Grady said.

Hawkins' home phone number is not listed, and a woman who answered at his business said she didn't know about what happened and could not comment.

``It's in the hands of the proper authorities,'' Magic spokesman Joel Glass said Saturday.

In Friday night's game, Juwan Howard had 24 points and Drew Gooden added 16 points and 12 rebounds to help the Magic overcome Tracy McGrady's ejection.

McGrady was ejected for twice kicking the basketball into the stands at the end of the first half. He was upset there was no foul call on his buzzer-beating layup.

On a night when he reached 10,000 career points, McGrady finished with 15 points -- his fewest since going scoreless on Dec. 19, when he hurt his back in the first quarter.

Carmelo Anthony had 35 points for Denver, which had its three-game winning streak snapped. Nene had 15, while Marcus Camby added 12 points and 20 rebounds.