Orlando, FL– A historical and remarkable run for the Orlando Magic continues as they have now tied their franchise record with nine consecutive wins in a row, defeating the Washington Wizards 130-125.
After beating the Wizards just two nights ago here at the Amway Center Washington came out on fire in that first period. Tyus Jones hit two threes including one in the left corner over Anthony Black, Corey Kispert chipped in a three, and Kuzma scored 12 points in that first period alone. Joe Ingles and Jalen Suggs got the Magic going early on the offensive end as Suggs had two layups cutting towards the basket, both passes were from Franz Wagner. Ingles checked in hit two threes, and was doing a phenomenal job of dishing the ball.
Joe Ingles picked up right where he left off in that first quarter with a lob to Mo Wagner and two other beautiful passes to Mo that led to layups to begin the second. Orlando’s two stars Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner helped to close out the half on a strong note for the Magic. Franz had a nice layup through the lane, and Banchero hit an in-rhythm three on the left wing over Daniel Gafford. Washington would go into the halftime locker room up 61-58.
Kyle Kuzma gave his best effort in the third quarter with 11 points to keep Washington’s hopes alive but Orlando was able to put the Wizards away in the second half. The Magic shot a very good 5-11 from behind the arch in the third period and Jalen Suggs led the way with 10 points in the period including two threes. The Magic would go on to outscore the Wizards in the third period and they went into the fourth quarter up 92-89.
Orlando found themselves in a tightly battled contest heading into the fourth and made sure to put Washington away. Mo Wagner, Paolo Banchero, and Franz Wagner were sensational in that fourth quarter and were the catalyst for how Orlando found themselves on the winning side of the scoreboard.
Washington took the lead early as they came out hot, nailing four three-pointers in the opening minutes of the fourth and they led 105-102 with 8:5 remaining. Mo Wagner came in and immediately impacted the game with a layup off a pass from Franz, and followed that right back up with a one layup off an Ingles missed three. Paolo Banchero hit a big 17-foot jumper that was followed up by a Franz Wagner dunk in transition to put the Magic up nine points with less than a minute remaining. Orlando closed out the game and has found themselves in the win column now for nine consecutive games.
Franz Wagner led all Magic scorers with 31 points this evening and it’s his third straight 30-point game in a row. Paolo Banchero had a big bounce-back game after scoring a porous six points on Wednesday evening, he recorded 28 points on 11-20 shooting from the field and 3-4 from deep. The Magic have a quick turnaround as they will be taking on the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center and will be looking to break Orlando Magic history.
