Magic 88, Hornets 83

Steve Francis scored 24 points, including seven in the final 2:01, to help Orlando beat the Hornets 88-83 on Wednesday night for the Hornets' first loss in Oklahoma City.

``He shot a lot of shots toward the end of game. He made a couple of them,'' said Hornets rookie Chris Paul. ``If you shoot that much, hopefully one of them will go in.''

Speedy Claxton led the Hornets with 24 points. Desmond Mason and David West added 12 points each for New Orleans, and rookie Chris Paul had 10.

Up Next: @ Home against Dallas Saturday night.