It took the Magic time to find their mark.

After a slow start from beyond the arc, Orlando's potent 3-point shooters finally came alive. And the Knicks' shaky defense didn't do much to stop them.

Lewis and Pietrus highlighted a big third-quarter push, making a flurry of 3-pointers during a stretch that had D'Antoni stomping his foot and screaming for timeouts.

"It's good. Now he can get it going in the first half and make it less interesting," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said of Lewis. "Two real good second halves, and I think that's key. The more we can get him going, the better."

The breaks did little to slow the Magic's run.

Lewis followed one of D'Antoni's timeouts by making a running layup, then back-to-back 3-pointers that only frustrated New York's coach. With every make, D'Antoni kept crossing his arms and looking down the bench for answers, but his team couldn't do much to slow Orlando.

Lewis said that the Magic's record, even with his suspension, only shows how much they believe they can contend for a title.

"It lets you know that we have a deep team," he said. "We have a lot of guys that can help us win games. We have a deep bench. Our starters are playing well for us, but we got a lot of guys that we can go to any night."

New York wasn't the only team struggling early.

The Magic (14.3 percent) and the Knicks (18.2 percent) shot poorly from 3-point range in the first half, and defense in the paint was spotty at best. Orlando's crowd was largely lethargic for most of the half until Lewis swatted a fast-break layup by Gallinari from behind in the final minutes.

Wearing their old black pinstripe uniforms, the Magic sprinted out to a 12-point lead on a pair of dunks by Howard only to watch that cushion dwindle. But Orlando's big man was enough to help his team go ahead 51-39 at intermission until the Magic poured it on late.

"It's always good to get wins," Van Gundy said. "At the end of the day, one win in December is as good as one win in March or April."

NOTES: It was hardly a surprise that Tiger Woods didn't show up at his courtside seat, but he still managed to create a minor buzz. Several fans stopped by the media section, a few feet from Woods' seat, to ask if the world's No. 1 golfer would be in attendance. Woods, who issued a "profound apology" Wednesday following allegations of infidelity that have only been magnified after his car accident outside his central Florida home last week, has season tickets to Magic games. He usually attends about a half dozen games a year in Orlando. ... The Knicks played without C Eddy Curry, who missed his fifth straight game because of a sore left knee. D'Antoni said "maybe" Curry will practice Thursday.