Orlando, FL – After tying the franchise record for wins during the past homestand, the Magic finally cooled off and were handed a 129-101 loss in Brooklyn.
Orlando’s first quarter was arguably one of the worst they’ve played all season. The entire team was outscored by Mikal Bridges alone, and the defense had no answer for him. Bridges dominated the floor, and Orlando simply couldn’t contain the paint or stop the penetration from him and the rest of the Nets. The team’s defense faltered for the first time in weeks, resulting in a significant deficit from the very first period. The Magic were outrebounded, outshot, and out-hustled throughout the quarter. Brooklyn capitalized, securing plenty of transition buckets with their 15 rebounds, more than double Orlando’s total. The offensive struggles mirrored the defensive lapses, as they could only muster four assists. The Magic closed the 1st quarter with just 22 points on 29% shooting, surrendering 43 points on 64% shooting to the Nets.
With such a large deficit going into the 2nd quarter, there was virtually nothing that could be done to save the game for the Magic. Bridges continued to score, and Brooklyn didn’t give up easy buckets defensively. On the bright side, two notable players, Paolo Banchero and Mo Wagner, put in their best efforts, scoring nine points each in the 2nd quarter, attempting to give the Magic some hope going into halftime. However, the Nets continued to capitalize on easy transition offense and second-chance points through elite rebounding, once again dominating the Magic on both sides of the ball. Despite a close quarter, the commanding 1st quarter left the Magic trailing by 22 going into the 2nd half.
During the 3rd quarter, the Magic seemed determined to keep their win streak alive and tried to spark a late comeback, with another nine-point quarter from Mo Wagner and an additional nine from his brother Franz. Things were seemingly going well until Spencer Dinwiddie started hitting his shots. Once he got going, he didn’t miss all quarter, making it difficult for the Magic to gameplan defensively due to the scoring threats across Brooklyn’s team. Despite the defense not being up to par, the offense began clicking. Both Franz and Paolo set teammates up, contributing four and three assists, respectively, bringing their total to 11 assists in the 3rd quarter alone. The Magic won the quarter by nine points, cutting the lead to single digits multiple times but still trailed 98-85 entering the 4th.
Despite their best efforts in the previous quarter, it became apparent that there was no hope of winning the game. After about four and a half minutes of play, Coach Mosley decided to rest the majority of Orlando’s key players and gave the bench players their time to shine. Unfortunately, the Magic bench wasn’t very productive, accumulating just 16 points, five assists, and eight rebounds in the 4th – about half in each category compared to what the Nets produced. Coach Mosley recognized the game was over and prioritized keeping everyone healthy for their next stretch of games.
The Magic came into Brooklyn seeking revenge for being knocked out of the In-Season Tournament and left with a snapped nine-game win streak, losing to the Nets for the second time already. Orlando now has four days of rest before playing Cleveland, hoping to get back into the win column.
