After a slow start, Tim Hardaway is finally getting comfortable coming off the bench.

Hardaway continued his recent roll as a super sub by scoring a season-high 18 points, leading the Dallas Mavericks past the deflating Orlando Magic 102-80 Saturday night in a matchup of the league's highest-scoring teams.

"I'm having fun and enjoying it," said Hardaway, a five-time All-Star who signed with Dallas in the offseason knowing he'd be backing up Steve Nash. "I told everyone to bear with me and here it is."

Hardaway was scoreless in four of the first 19 games and had three points or less three more times. He's averaging 14.3 points in the eight games since, with Dallas winning the last six.

The Mavericks needed Hardaway against the Magic because Michael Finley and Steve Nash combined for 31 points, one game after scoring 33 each, and because leading scorer Dirk Nowitzki played just 20 minutes because of a sprained right ankle.

Orlando led by five in the first quarter, then fell way behind after an 18-8 Dallas run to start the second period. The Magic cut a 24-point deficit to 12 with 8:49 left on a dunk by Patrick Ewing, then Hardaway hit a 3-pointer and the Mavericks cruised from there.

Dallas came in averaging 102.3 points, just ahead of Orlando's 101.9. The Magic hurt their total with a season-low 75 points Friday night; this was their second-lowest total.

It's no coincidence that Orlando's funk began when Grant Hill went out with a season-ending ankle injury and Tracy McGrady started having back problems.

"It's tough to make shots when you don't have guys to create shots, and two of the best creators are on the sidelines," Magic coach Doc Rivers said, adding that McGrady should return Wednesday.

Mike Miller had 20 points and the other four starters combined for 21. Other than Ewing's 16 points, no backup had more than half that.

Orlando, playing its third game in four nights, shot 29 percent in the first quarter and only 33 percent for the game.

Darrell Armstrong and Troy Hudson each went 2-for-11, with Armstrong going 1-for-8 on 3-pointers. The Magic was 4-for-22 on 3-pointers en route to its fourth loss in five games and the seventh in nine.

The Mavericks knew they were playing a depleted team, which meant the chance to start their three-day Christmas break early.

Magic guard Jeryl Sasser came off the injured list prior to tipoff, allowing him to make his NBA debut in the city where he grew up and went to college.

Sasser, Orlando's first-round pick after being the career scoring leader at Southern Methodist, had three points and three rebounds in 15 minutes.