ATLANTA, (Reuters) – Dwight Howard responded to a  halftime challenge from his coach to lead the Orlando Magic to a  93-76 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday.

Howard amassed 22 points and 17 rebounds as the Magic  recovered from a slow start to hand the Hawks their first home  loss of the season.

“He’s a monster,” team mate Anthony Johnson told reporters of  Howard. “At halftime, the coach challenged him to be the best man  on the court and he stepped up and did that.”

Atlanta was attempting to record a 8-0 home start for the  first time since the 1993-94 season but instead slipped to a  second straight defeat, despite 22 points from Joe Johnson.

The Hawks took a 51-39 lead into halftime but quickly lost  momentum in the second half.

Vince Carter recorded 21 points and nine rebounds for the  Magic, who surged ahead on the back of a 21-6 run in the fourth  quarter that put the visitors 90-73 ahead with 1:36 left.

The win moved Orlando (12-4) ahead of the Hawks (11-4) at the top of the Southeast Division.