NEW YORK, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- Grant Hill collected 16 points and a season-high 15 rebounds Wednesday night as the Orlando Magic overcame Tracy McGrady's absence to post an 87-85 victory over the New York Knicks.
Still at less than 100 percent following multiple surgeries on his left ankle, Hill has had trouble with back-to-back games. But the star forward was called on to play extra minutes with McGrady, the NBA's leading scorer, sidelined with a sprained left ankle.
Hill hit a crucial baseline jumper with 1:01 remaining, giving Orlando an 86-83 lead. After the Knicks closed to 86-85 on Othella Harrington's follow shot with 35 seconds left, Darrell Armstrong hit one of two from the line with 3.2 seconds to go.
New York had a chance to tie and called timeout to get the ball at mid-court, but Howard Eisley was hounded by Armstrong and could not get off a shot before time expired.
The loss snapped a season-high three-game winning streak for the Knicks, who rallied from an 18-point deficit to take a 75-70 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Allan Houston scored 31 points and sparked the Knicks' comeback. But New York went cold in the final period, scoring just 12 points.
Mike Miller scored 23 points for Orlando, including the Magic's first 11 in the opening 2 1/2 minutes.
