The Orlando Magic entered Sunday night’s game on a high after taking down the Clippers on the road. That game had seen Orlando staging a furious fourth-quarter rally, with Markelle Fultz and Wendell Carter Jr. closing things out in the final stages. Winning both legs of a back-to-back at Crypto.com Arena (formerly the Staples Center) however, is never easy. And on Sunday night, the Magic didn’t have quite enough left in the tank to beat a Lakers team desperately scrambling for a playoff spot.
The game opened with strong competitive balance. Paolo Banchero got off to a quick start for the Magic, and had matched the Lakers at 8 points apiece half way through the first quarter (with Orlando leading 15-8). From there however, the Lakers’ role players stepped up, with Austin Reaves, Troy Brown Jr., and Dennis Schroder all contributing to what would become a narrow, 28-25 advantage for LA at the first quarter break.
The second quarter would see the Lakers expand their lead as the Magic went cold from the field. Orlando shot just 11 of 24 for the quarter, and failed to convert a single three. Meanwhile, continued production from Reaves was supplemented by a strong showing by some of the Lakers’ recent acquisitions. Trade deadline pickups D’Angelo Russell and Malik Beasley had a relatively easy time shaking free of the Orlando guards, hitting a trio of threes between them to help LA expand its edge. The Lakers led 59-49 at the half.
The fireworks came out early in the second half, with both teams starting hot from three. For the Magic, Gary Harris and Carter Jr. both connected from deep in the opening minute, with Fultz adding a triple just a short time later. During this same stretch however, Brown Jr. and Russell hit threes for the Lakers, helping LA to maintain its lead. From there, the quarter took on a back-and-forth pattern, with the Magic periodically inching closer only for the Lakers to cushion their lead. Orlando ultimately proved resilient though, and used a 10-4 run (complete with two Cole Anthony three-pointers) to trim the margin to 84-81 heading into the fourth quarter.
But for a brief Lakers surge in the opening minutes, that three-point margin more or less held for the bulk of the final quarter. With just under six minutes to play however, a midrange jumper from Carter Jr. cut the Lakers’ lead to 93-91, setting up an exciting finish. Austin Reaves quickly responded for LA with an and-one jumper of his own, after which the teams began trading buckets. A Banchero jumper brought the Magic to within 1 at 99-98; Russell answered with a finish at the basket to boost the Lakers to a 101-98 advantage; then another three from Anthony tied the game with just 2:39 to play.
The Magic at this point had put themselves in position to gut out an LA sweep. It was Austin Reaves, however –– a sort of budding star in his role for the Lakers –– who played closer. Doing most of his damage at the foul line (including after an ill-timed technical foul on Banchero), Reaves managed 10 points in the game’s final 1:33. Despite the best efforts of Franz Wagner to play the hero for Orlando, this proved too much for the Magic to keep up with, and the Lakers came out on top by a score of 111-105.
Splitting two away games in Los Angeles is not a bad outcome as this Orlando team continues to gain valuable experience. Even so, the Magic will be kicking themselves for letting this one slip away.
The Magic next return home to face the Wizards on Tuesday night.
THE CONVERSATION.