New York, NY (My Sportsbook) - The New York Knicks will retire Patrick Ewing's #33 at Madison Square Garden tonight when they host the Orlando Magic.

Orlando coach Doc Rivers was a Knick teammate of Ewing's, but he and his Magic will not be nostalgic once the ball is tipped. The Magic have won four straight games and are currently the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference -- 2 1/2 games behind the sixth-seeded New Orleans Hornets.

The Magic are coming off an impressive 98-93 victory over the Dallas Mavericks. Tracy McGrady scored 26 points and dished out seven assists, while newcomers Drew Gooden and Gordan Giricek added 20 points apiece to the win. Gooden also grabbed 10 rebounds and has now posted two double-double performances in a Magic uniform.

"We're finishing games," said McGrady, who shot 10-of-20 from the field. "We're maturing out there each night as the nights go by."

Rivers is equally optimistic.

"There's a glow, and we have to keep that going," Rivers said.

Orlando is 11-18 on the road and has a 20-17 mark within the Eastern Conference.

New York has lost five of its last six games, all on the road. The Knicks are coming off a 105-76 setback at the hands of the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday night. Latrell Sprewell led the Knicks with 13 points on just 5-of-14 shooting from the floor. Allan Houston shot 3-of-11 from the field and finished with just six points. The Knicks will always lose if Houston and Sprewell combine for such a modest point total.

"Tonight was just a bad night for me personally," said Houston. "I made a lot of mistakes defensively as well as offensively shooting the ball. That's what's frustrating to me."

The Knicks are 16-14 at home and have a 13-22 mark within the Eastern Conference.

New York is still entertaining thoughts of garnering the eighth and final playoff berth in the East. It is a bit of a pipe dream, since the Knicks are four games out of the final berth with two teams in front of them.

Orlando has beaten the Knicks twice this season and six straight times overall. The all-time series is tied 27-27.