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A travel-weary, jet-lagged Orlando Magic squad needed something, anything to get them going on this day. And fortunately for the Magic, they have the luxury of having not one, but two point guards capable of sending a jolt through the team.

A night after watching Jameer Nelson play well with 24 points it was Carlos Arroyo's turn to carry the offense and make sure the Magic avoided what would have been a monumental letdown. Arroyo was a driving force behind the Magic making 17 of 18 shots in the second quarter and 23 of 27 during one highly efficient stretch as Orlando throttled the Team China All-Stars 116-92 in the second game of the China Games.

Arroyo scored 25 points, handed out nine assists, swiped four steals and wowed the sellout crowd of 11,572 at The Venetian Arena with his dazzling ball-handling and no-look passes.

Arroyo's energy and creativity were just the pick-me-ups the Magic needed after playing the Cleveland Cavaliers a night earlier in Shanghai. He seems to be the perfect fit at point guard in Stan Van Gundy's up-tempo offense because of his ability to freelance and his vision in the open court.

"This style of play helps everybody on this team, letting us play our game and giving us some freedom," said Arroyo, who nine of 15 shots, two three-pointers and five free throws. "As long as you stay in the framework of playing as a team, you can have that freedom to do some things."

Arroyo and Nelson have certainly done some things this preseason, playing as well any Magic players since training camp opened three weeks ago. Van Gundy put the starting position up for grabs when camp opened and both have played well enough to earn big minutes. Nelson has the edge to be the starter, but it's Arroyo who will still get major minutes in the guts of the game because of his ability to chance the tempo with his hustle.

"They've handled a very competitive situation really well," Van Gundy said. "You're always going to be competitive about playing time. They both want to be out there 36-38 minutes a game, but they're able to put that aside for the good of the team. They've been great so far, and we need them to be great this season."

Orlando (4-1 this preseason) and Cleveland (1-3) close the 2007 China Games Saturday (12:30 a.m. Central Florida time, ESPN 2). The Magic then take a 17-hour charter flight back to Orlando and arrive early Sunday morning.

After the stint in China, Orlando plays one more preseason game, hosting the San Antonio Spurs next Thursday at Amway Arena. The Magic open the regular season Oct. 31 at home against the Milwaukee Bucks.

The Magic started Thursday's exhibition game slowly, and understandably so. Orlando's charter flight didn't get off the ground in Shanghai until 3 a.m. The Magic arrived at their Macao hotel around 5:30 a.m. and the luggage didn't arrive in rooms until almost noon.

Team China led 12-5 early in the game, hitting four quick three-pointers to stun the Magic and electrify the crowd. Orlando missed eight of its first nine shots.

But that's the point when Orlando awoke from its slumber and exerted its control in the game.

From the midpoint of the first quarter until halftime, the Magic made 23 of 27 shots to blow out to a commanding 64-39 halftime lead. And in the second quarter alone, the Magic made their first 15 shots and hit 17 of 18 in the period. Kevin Kruger's 23-footer was the only misfire of the quarter, and the reserve point guard redeemed himself by drilling a deep three-pointer at the halftime horn.

A night after playing 37 minutes and scoring a game-high 31 points against Cleveland, Magic star center Dwight Howard got the second half off Thursday. He had 12 points and four rebounds in two quarters of work, hitting four of seven from both the field and free throw line.

The relationship between Nelson and Arroyo is a unique on in that they go hard at each other in practice, but are the best of friends off the court. They are usually matched up against one other in every drill and their every performance is matched against the other. Yet, they mesh because they are different — Nelson more the scorer, Arroyo the playmaker.

"We make each other better every day, going hard at each other, and it shows in the games," said Nelson, who had four points and rested in the second half Thursday. "We're both capable of doing a lot of things. We're doing a better job of taking care of the ball this year and creating for other people on the team."

Arroyo, the driving force behind Thursday's second-quarter explosion with 11 points and three assists, is much more comfortable this season after admittedly feeling restricted last season under coach Brian Hill. In the final year of his contract, Arroyo is hoping to have a big season that will allow him to remain in Orlando long term so that he can stay close to his Puerto Rican roots.

"Last year was hard because I never got into a rhythm and when I did a couple of times my minutes went down," Arroyo said. "I tried to stay positive, but it was hard. I'm a competitor and I want to play.

"You can't think about (a contract year). I love the sport and play hard every night and all of that is bigger than any contract thoughts I might be having. But definitely, I want to be here the rest of my career."

Enlarge By Kin Cheung, AP Orlando's Dwight Howard backs down China's Zhu Fangyu during their exhibition in Macau, China, on Thursday.