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Orlando Magic Grades: Brooklyn Nets 121, Orlando Magic 111

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Apr 1, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Jeremy Lin (7) and Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon (00) fight for possession in the third quarter at Barclays Center. The Nets won 121-111. Mandatory Credit: Nicole Sweet-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 1, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Jeremy Lin (7) and Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon (00) fight for possession in the third quarter at Barclays Center. The Nets won 121-111. Mandatory Credit: Nicole Sweet-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Orlando Magic could not find the energy they needed to break a third-quarter tie and got routed in the fourth quarter against the Brooklyn Nets.

The Orlando Magic had every excuse for their poor performance in a 121-111 loss to the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Saturday.

The team played a 7:30 game in Boston the night before — that went down to the final buzzer. And then problems with the team plane in the middle of a snow storm did not get the Magic in New York until 3 a.m. That and then the Magic had to turnaround for a 6 p.m. start.

Orlando started the game strong, but could not sustain that momentum. Their movement slowed considerably and they were unable to keep up with a Brooklyn Nets team that always plays with energy, even if the team lacks the overall talent to win consistently.

Like the Magic, the Nets have discovered something to close the season and have built some momentum. Orlando just could not dig deep.

The Magic likely will not use fatigue as an excuse — nor should they. Winning teams find a way to scrounge up some energy when they do not have any and get a win. Brooklyn had all the energy and took it to Orlando.

The Nets, led by a stellar bench that scored 72 points, scored the first 11 points of the fourth quarter to break an 89-89 tie and ease by for a 10-point victory at home. The Magic simply could not keep pace. Whether it was fatigue or inability on this day, the Nets had their number.

Brooklyn moved the ball and got open shots, attacking Orlando off the dribble. The Nets shot 53.2 percent from the floor and broke the Magic down time and time again. Orlando could not get much traction defensively.

Offensively, the Magic made shots relatively consistently until the fourth quarter. This has been the story for the team for several weeks now. It hit them again. The team simply cannot rely solely on its offense to win. That is not who this team is. It has never been who this team is.

And in the fourth quarter, the Magic’s overall poor and lagging defense came back to haunt them.

PG. Orlando Magic. ELFRID PAYTON. B. No player represents the Orlando Magic’s up-and-down, Jekyll-and-Hyde nature on offense and defense quite like <strong><a rel=

B+. <strong><a rel=. C. Orlando Magic. NIKOLA VUCEVIC

B+. The good news for the Orlando Magic is they saw <strong><a rel=. PF. Orlando Magic. AARON GORDON

C-. The Orlando Magic’s bench was again a disaster and a big reason why the Magic lost their lead in the first quarter, fell behind in the second quarter and lost the game in the fourth quarter. The team had only 16 points from the bench, 11 from <strong><a rel=. PG. Orlando Magic. D.J. AUGUSTIN

Do not tell the Brooklyn Nets they have nothing to play for. Despite their general lack of talent, Kenny Atkinson has his team playing with energy at all times. And with a solid bench, they can sneak up on teams.<p>That is what happened as they took advantage of Orlando’s fatigue and blitzed them in the second and fourth quarters with the second unit in the game. A lot of the work came from <strong><a rel=. 17-59. 15th East. BROOKLYN NETS. A-