Magic Fail to Comeback
San Fransisco, CA — Orlando played their hearts out to try closing out this game and showed signs of a comeback in the fourth quarter, but the Magic ultimately fell to the Golden State Warriors 104-99 at the Chase Center. Despite starting out ahead in the first quarter and a valiant effort in the fourth quarter, the Magic couldn’t overcome constant defensive lapses and shooting inconsistencies, now falling into a four game losing streak and losing 11 out of the last 13 games.
Injury Report Updates
Orlando was without Caleb Houstan (illness) and Jalen Suggs(quad), both sidelined before the game. Suggs has now missed four games in a row, all of which have ended up in losses for Orlando. This brings the Magic to just 4-12 without Suggs on the season, despite having Franz and Paolo come back from injury for almost two weeks now. This shows just how key having an NBA All Defense level guard on the team and just how Jalen Suggs may just be the most important player on the Magic.
The Warriors were missing their young stud Jonathan Kumings (ankle), but the rest of the team was able to step up in his absence.
Magic’s Inconsistent Performance
The Magic began the game brightly, leading 26-18 after the first quarter. However, their performance dipped significantly in the second and third quarters, where they were outscored 64-41. Franz Wagner was the standout for Orlando, contributing 21 points, with 14 of those coming in the fourth quarter in an attempt to mount a comeback. Paolo Banchero was inconsistent throughout the game, scoring eight points in the first half, warming up with 10 in the third, and falling off completely in the fourth where he didn’t score at all. Banchero ended up finishing with 18 points on 37.5% shooting. Cole Anthony added 26 points on solid efficiency, and helped Franz out with 11 points in the final period.
Orlando’s Defensive Lapses
Orlando’s defense was surprisingly poor at the end of the second quarter and throughout the third quarter, uncharacteristically having to multiple defensive breakdowns. The Warriors capitalized on these mistakes, shooting an absurd 75% from three in the third quarter alone, despite their overall poor shooting night with an overall percentage of just 30.6%. The Magic’s defensive rotations were all off in that third quarter, which resulted in Golden State easliy swinging the rock to find the open look.
Physical Game Between the Bigs
Goga Bitadze and Kevon Looney engaged in a significant rebounding battle, with Looney grabbing 15 rebounds, seven of which were offensive, while Bitadze secured 14 rebounds, six offensively. This battle for second-chance points was crucial, but Orlando couldn’t fully capitalize on their offensive rebounds. This game was gritty down low, and the refs were contantly blowing the whistle, with 26 fouls called on the Magic and 16 on the Warriors. This physical game led to a wild free throw disparity, with the Magic shooting just 10 at a 50% clip and the Warriors getting a more favorable 34 free throws, of which they sunk 24. The undisiplined Magic very while gave Golden State mulitple free opportunities to score and it came back to bite them while they were trying to lead a late comeback.
Warriors’ Stars Came to Play
The Warriors’ scoring was led by Andrew Wiggins with 25 points and Stephen Curry with 24, though Curry had an off night from three, hitting only 16.7%. The Warriors’ struggles were evident, but they were able to find contributers on the benchh, including Moses Moody with 17 points in 24 minutes.
Closing Out the Road Trip
The Magic’s performance in this game was a mixed bag, with moments of brilliance overshadowed by defensive lapses, shooting struggles, and lots of fouls. As they continue their road trip with two more games away from home, Orlando will need to find their consistency to turn their season back around. With a 24-27 record the Magic find themselves in a play-in spot with the All Star weekend approaching quickly. This team, who took the Cavs to seven games in the playoffs last year, looked promising and will look to build upon their success from last seasona and enter the post season once more.
The Magic will head Sacremento to play against the new-look Kings after the De’Aaron Fox trade on Wednesday evening.