Nobody could put the ball in the ocean for three quarters. Least of all Michael Jordan, who had the good sense not to shoot it in the fourth quarter Friday night.

Washington teammates Hubert Davis, Tyronn Lue and Chris Whitney finally found the range after Jordan returned to the game with 7:14 remaining, and the Wizards pulled away to their eighth straight victory, a 93-75 decision over the Magic before a sellout crowd of 17,248.

Jordan shot 3-for-16 and scored a season-low 12 points.

He didn't seem interested in scoring in the fourth quarter and with the Magic shooting 7-for-36 in the period, he didn't have to.

"He had a lousy shooting night, but they got the win," said Magic center Patrick Ewing.

"That's what it's about. We missed shots that we normally knock down, for whatever reason."

One reason was the absence of Mike Miller, who left the game early in the third quarter with a bruised lower back.

Miller led the Magic with 14 points in only 24 minutes.

He joins Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill on the Magic's growing list of wounded players.

The Wizards, who have been playing without Christian Laettner, also lost Richard Hamilton, their second-leading scorer.

He went out in the first quarter with a pulled right groin.

Davis scored a game-high 19 points while Popeye Jones added 13 points and 14 rebounds for the Wizards.

Whitney and Lue added 11 points each.

The Wizards (13-12) were every bit as inept offensively as the Magic (13-15) for more than three quarters.

Then the shots started falling.

"It has taken me a while to realize these guys have confidence in themselves and I might as well have confidence in them, too," said Jordan, who had eight assists.

"I was able to start moving the ball around. I think the guys really impressed me by just stepping up and hitting big shots."

But not the Magic. They shot 33 percent for the game, including a 2-for-14 night for Pat Garrity and 4-for-12 by Darrell Armstrong.

"We got a bunch of good looks and just didn't make them," Garrity said.

"Once they hit a couple, you could just see the confidence start to build."

Jordan came into the game as the NBA's No. 11 scorer, averaging 23.5 points.

He missed his first seven shots with his first field goal coming on a mid-range jumper with 2:02 left in the second quarter.

The Magic never led until Armstrong's three-pointer made it 41-39 with 36.2 seconds left in the half.

Jordan tied it with a baseline jumper, and Armstrong and Davis exchanged baskets in the final 2.2 seconds, making it 43-43 at halftime.

Monty Williams scored two baskets on a 5-0 run to start the second half, giving the Magic a five-point lead.

But Washington pulled ahead for keeps, at 56-54, on Davis jumper late in the quarter.

The Wizards led only 70-66 when Jordan came off the bench and back into the game with 7:14 remaining.

They outscored the Magic, 23-9, after that.

MAGIC NOTESTracy McGrady missed his second straight game with a low back strain. He will sit out tonight's game at Dallas, remaining in Atlanta for therapy. The Magic expect him back for Wednesday's home game against Indiana . . .The sellout was only the second of the season for the Magic in 12 home games. The first was for a game against Sacramento on Nov. 9 . . .It is Washington's first eight-game winning streak since March-April of 1983. The franchise record of nine, established in November and December of 1978, can be matched tonight at New York . . .The Wizards have won only two of their last 11 games against the Magic. Orlando leads the all-time series, 32-18.