Howard dominates in Magic's victory

The 76ers might have given their fans a thrill or two making it to the final weekend of the regular season still in playoff contention, but the excitement vanished in about the time it took Dwight Howard to throw down a hellacious dunk.

The Sixers couldn't stop the 6-foot-11, 265-pound Howard on the inside and couldn't make shots at their offensive end yesterday, falling meekly to the Orlando Magic in a 104-87 loss that eliminated them from the playoff race.

A Wachovia Center crowd of 18,588 came to see the home squad continue its trek toward the improbable, but the Sixers played one of their worst games in recent weeks - taking into account what they shot from the field (39.2 percent) and what the Magic shot (53.1 percent).

Howard, who established a career high with 26 rebounds against the Sixers last year, set another career best yesterday with 35 points. The 21-year-old made his first 10 shots from the field - all in the first half, when he scored 26 points - and finished 14 of 15.

Most of Howard's shots were of the no-doubt variety. He threw down eight dunks while mistreating Samuel Dalembert, Steven Hunter and Joe Smith with equal disdain.

"He does a great job of using his body," Smith said. "He's pretty strong on the block. He's able to get position early. Guys on his team realize when he has good position, and they get him the ball where he's comfortable. We tried to get the ball out of his hands, but when you get it that close to the basket, it's kind of tough."

Thanks to Howard, who also contributed 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals, the Magic solidified their hold on eighth place in the Eastern Conference, going two games up on Indiana with three to play.

The Sixers' leading scorers, Andre Iguodala and Kyle Korver, tried to give their team a lift by playing. Iguodala had missed two games with a lower back strain and Korver had sat out three with a sprained right wrist.

Neither made much of an impact. Iguodala sank just 3 of 12 shots from the field en route to 14 points, five assists, three steals and seven turnovers. Korver knocked down 4 of 6 from three-point range for 14 points but missed all five of his shots from inside the arc.

"They wanted to come back and play and give us a chance to make the playoffs," Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said. "That says a lot about those guys."

Iguodala said his back tightened up and got a little worse during the game, but he didn't regret his decision.

"I told myself," he said, "that if we won the next couple of games [the two he missed] that I'm definitely coming back no matter what."

The Magic made seven of their first eight shots and led, 35-25, after one quarter getting 18 points from Howard.

The halftime break did nothing to slow them. They scored the first nine points of the third quarter and took their biggest lead, 70-48, on Grant Hill's jumper with 9:27 to play.

"It's disappointing to lose," Cheeks said, "but if we look at the big scheme of things in terms of the type of players and the type of people that we have, I'm fortunate to be able to coach them and I very much look forward to the future."

Added Korver: "Obviously, making the playoffs is your first goal every season and we didn't make it there, but I think our future is bright. I really do."

Notes. Former Chester High and St. Joseph's star Jameer Nelson struggled with foul trouble and had 10 points, five assists and three steals for the Magic. . . . The Sixers said Iguodala, Korver and Kevin Ollie (right eye bruise) would remain in Philadelphia for treatment and not make the trip for tonight's game in Detroit. . . . Shavlik Randolph, who has been out since November with a fractured and dislocated left ankle, said he would not be back this season.