Orlando won as a team in the Garden last night, beating the New York Knicks by 104-98. Two of the Magic’s four wins have come in New York this season and saw the Madison Square Garden crowd silenced.
This was a team performance from Orlando, one which saw each player have an impact. Locked in on defence, effective on offence, limiting fouls and to an element turnovers saw the Magic competitive throughout against a much fancied Knicks team.
New York could not breach the paint through Orlando’s swarming and disciplined defence. It saw them putting up more three’s than usual, many of which were well contested or rushed at the end of the shot clock.
For Orlando there were many big plays at times where they were needed. Cole Anthony sunk a long three a minute before halftime. That shot gave the Magic a four point lead and got Cole going. Terrence Ross stole the ball on defence and made a breakaway dunk late in the fourth. Shortly after Franz Wagner smashed home a driving AND-1 dunk that put Orlando ahead with 1:45 left. The win was sealed by a Jalen Suggs steal from Derrick Rose. Suggs lobbed the ball up to Wendell Carter Jr who slammed it home with 29 seconds left.
Top Magic Performers As Orlando Won As A Team In The Garden
You could virtually write any name into this section as it was a team win. Special mention has to be made of the following though.
Terrence Ross led the Magic as he again provided 19 points from the bench. He brought energy and focus, reminding us all of what he offers to the team.
Cole Anthony landed a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. He also dished out another 7 assists and made a steal. His shooting wasn’t accurate (especially early and from 3) but it was valuable.
Wendell Carter Jr made an impact on the stats, despite getting into early foul trouble that limited his minutes. That saw Chuma Okeke play increased minutes having a huge defensive game against Julius Randle.
Franz Wagner was everywhere on the court and gave the Knicks trouble all game. His 16 points and rebounds does nothing to tell the story of his positional intelligence and defensive determination.
Mo Bamba also recorded a double-double with a 12 point, 12 rebound game. He battled on the glass at both ends, putting in a huge effort against a strong rebounding Knicks team.
And finally Jalen Suggs, who according to his post match interview is a ‘bad mother-f….r’. Suggs had a quality game. Not everything went right, but the majority did. He has had his struggles but is growing into the NBA having had a baptism of fire.
Moving On After Orlando Won As A Team In The Garden
The Magic stay in New York, facing the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night at 7:30pm (U.K. 12:30am Saturday). Orlando now have a 4-11 losing record and remain last in the Eastern Conference. Brooklyn sit second in the East with an 11-5 record.
Orlando and Brooklyn played a week ago in the Amway Center, it was not a fun game for Magic fans! The Nets ran out winners by 123-90. A 30-point performance from Kevin Durant, on 11-of-12 shooting catapulted them to victory. James Harden also notched a triple-double.
The Nets beat the Cleveland Cavaliers last night by 99-109. James Harden led with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists. They also got 20 point-plus performances from Kevin Durant, Patty Mills and LaMarcus Aldridge.
After Brooklyn the Magic move to face Milwaukee twice. The first Bucks game is on the second night of a back-to-back for Orlando.
A review of the Knicks game by the Magic’s Josh Cohen can be read here on the Orlando Magic website.
