The home losses continue for Orlando as they fell 102-89 last night to the San Antonio Spurs in the Amway Center. Turnovers, an inability to score consistently and to get stops when they had made a run saw the Magic drop to a 2-8 losing record.
A poor shooting 36 point first half by the Magic saw them down by 13 points at the half. Orlando twice had the gap cut to 7 points in the final quarter but they could not get those needed stops defensively.
Cole Anthony led all scorers with 21 points, adding 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. Wendell Carter Jr secured another double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. With 12 points Jalen Suggs has scored double figures in all but one of his 10 NBA games. Mo Bamba made another two 3-pointers last night as his improved shooting from distance continues. R.J. Hampton all three of his attempts from beyond the arc on his way to 11 points. Chuma Okeke continued his return, still being limited to a shade under 20 minutes of play.
Over all it was another frustrating night on the offensive end with 18 turnovers, shooting 39% from the field & 29% from 3. By the close Orlando had struggled to contain Dejounte Murray, who was the dominant player on the floor with 20 points, 11 rebounds & 7 assists.
Moving On As The Home Losses Continue For Orlando
Orlando still sit 14th in the Eastern Conference with a losing 2-8 record. Both wins so far this season have come on the road. All four games in the Amway Center have ended in defeat.
The next opportunity to get that first home court win is against the Utah Jazz on Sunday. This is another 11pm U.K. tip time. The Jazz cruised to victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday by 116-98. The Jazz were without Donovan Mitchell, out with an ankle injury. Jordan Clarkson notched 30 points, Bojan Bogdanovic scored 23 and Joe Ingles added another 19. The Jazz have a 7-1 winning record and sit top of the Western Conference. Before playing in Orlando the Jazz have the first night of a back-to-back in Miami, playing the Heat.
A full game review by the Magic’s Josh Cohen can be read here on the Orlando Magic website.
