This wasn't a win. It was a spanking.

The Orlando Magic resumed their chase of a top-four playoff seeding in the Eastern Conference Tuesday night, paddling Chicago's Baby Bulls 112-97 at the United Center.

Riding the return of Tracy McGrady and Pat Garrity ? who both missed Sunday's loss in Cleveland ? the Magic took the Bulls to school, making them dizzy with excellent ball movement that produced wide-open shots.

?It's amazing how good a coach I am when Tracy and Pat are shooting like they did tonight,'' Magic Coach Doc Rivers said. ?One thing we really do well as a team is shoot the ball. If we get the open shots, we're going to make them.''

The Bulls, who started three rookies and one second-year player, never seriously challenged after the second quarter began. Center Eddy Curry and power forward Tyson Chandler ? their pair of 19-year-old bookends ? at times looked like they had gotten stuck on the playground merry-go-round.

McGrady, still relieved after learning Monday that there was no evidence of any stress fracture developing, showed no signs of a problem with his sprained right foot. He wore a special pad in his shoe, and he required some extra treatment after the game.

McGrady led the Magic with 25 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in 41 minutes, hitting nine of his 19 shots.

Garrity, who missed Sunday's  game with a right thigh bruise, had 18 points (16 in the first half) and eight rebounds.

The Magic (30-26) closed to within one game of the Boston Celtics (31-25) and the No. 4 playoff seed, which would mean home-court advantage in the first round. They play tonight in Toronto.

Although the final score sounded reasonably close, it never was. After dominating for three periods, the Magic just got sloppy and too casual in the fourth quarter, letting the Bulls keep the game close enough to hold fans in their seats. But they never felt threatened.

The only downside was the inability to put the Bulls away early, which would have allowed McGrady to play fewer minutes, which would have helped for tonight's game against the Raptors.

?Don't worry, I'll be lacing them up in Toronto, and the game after that, and the game after that,'' McGrady said. ?I'm good to go now.''

Magic center Horace Grant, who didn't even play in the fourth quarter, outplayed the much younger but more athletic Curry. Grant had 16 points, hitting eight of his 10 shots.

Darrell Armstrong had just nine points, but he dished 11 assists, making sure the ball kept moving to the open shooter.

The Magic led 90-68 going into the final period, but they started their coast a little too soon. The Orlando victory snapped Chicago's three-game winning streak ? longest in two seasons. It was the first time that Jalen Rose lost in a Bulls uniform after he was traded from the Indiana Pacers last week.

?I don't think we were ever in trouble,'' Armstrong said. ?But we just need to learn how to put teams away. We stopped executing our plays, and that let them hang around.''

Rose led the Bulls (15-41) with 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds, but the frustration with his young teammates was obvious. Bulls reserve Marcus Fizer had 18 points and five rebounds.

The Magic had another good shooting night, making 49.4 percent. They hit 10-of-24 from 3-point range. They also had 11 more assists than the Bulls.

The Magic led 64-51 at intermission, riding some hot shooting and the return of McGrady and Garrity. The two combined for 34 points in the first two periods. Grant, who loves returning to visit Chicago, had eight points in the first eight minutes, still hearing the boos with each basket.

The Magic shot 64 percent and scored 38 points in the first quarter. Rose had 11 points in the first 12 minutes, but he was topped by Garrity, who had 12 points and four rebounds.

Patrick Ewing played just six minutes in the first half, but he managed four points and six rebounds, scoring one basket when he grabbed an offensive rebound in front of Chandler.

?You can't give up 38 points in the first quarter to a good basketball team like that and expect to get back in,'' said Bulls Coach Bill Cartwright. ?We were never the aggressors. We were never able to get back and make it a real game.''