Orlando Magic go cold, get sloppy late against Indiana Pacers
The Orlando Magic relied heavily on their defense but could not find the offense in the fourth quarter as the team went cold and sloppy in a loss in Indiana
97. 100. 84. 38. Final
The Orlando Magic seemed to have the momentum ready to roll as they found Channing Frye for a 3-pointer and an 81-78 lead.
Yes, the game was ugly, but the Magic defense was solid, making things difficult for the Pacers, cutting off driving lanes and challenging shots. The Pacers were second guessing themselves.
So too were the Magic. It would take just one more big run — Frye’s 3-pointer ended an 8-0 Magic run to retake the lead — to close the game.
That would belong to the Pacers and the Magic never recovered, pressing to get that momentum-building shot and failing to find it.
Indiana ended the game on a 19-3 run in the final 7:28 as Orlando could not get shots to fall and could not get the ball moving well at all. The Pacers slowly pulled away for a 97-84 win at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Monday.
| Score | Off. Rtg. | eFG% | O.Reb.% | TO% | FTR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orlando | 84 | 83.6 | 46.2 | 16.3 | 20.5 | 21.8 |
| Indiana | 97 | 98.3 | 51.3 | 14.0 | 17.2 | 28.6 |
Evan Fournier (ORL) — 21 pts.; Victor Oladipo (ORL) — 15 pts., 7 rebs.
Paul George (IND) — 27 pts., 7 assts.; George Hill (IND) — 23 pts.
The Magic went ice cold in the fourth quarter, struggling to get good shots and struggling to get the shots they did get to go down.
Really, the issue in the fourth quarter was how out of sync the Magic offense seemed to be. Passes were thrown at teammates’ feet and drives forced into the help defense from the Pacers.
The Magic committed 22 total turnovers and it was a problem throughout the game as neither team was able to gain much distance from the other. Orlando happened to be the one to go cold at the wrong moment. And forcing offense only made things worse.
The team committed eight turnovers in the fourth quarter alone.
And so Indiana slowly began to pull away. But it was slow because the Magic were able to play good defense most of the way.
The Pacers shoot just 44.2 percent from the floor. Paul George scored 19 of his 27 points in the first quarter and George Hill scored 23 points. Indiana struggled to find much offensive traction otherwise.
And after the slow start on George, the Magic buckled down and made his life difficult. The Pacers became as sloppy as the Magic — 18 turnovers of their own.
Orlando though continued to be a step behind, as the team did while it tried to defend George early on. Passes were not crisp and the team was not quite finishing plays or getting into a good rhythm.
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As always, the Magic offense was successful when it moved the ball. It just did not happen quite often enough. Orlando dished out a season-low 16 assists in the game.
Instead, the Magic ducked their heads and tried to get to the basket. The calls were limited — Elfrid Payton and Scott Skiles each picked up technical fouls late in the third quarter, helping the Pacers sneak back into the lead before the end of the period.
Skiles characterized the play as a bit selfish. The team was just struggling to finish around the rim and struggling to gain any traction or consistency.
The ball moved well and the team scored, it did not and the team looked sloppy.
Evan Fournier led the team with 21 points on 7-for-13 shooting. Victor Oladipo scored 15 points on 7-for-18 shooting. He did not get to the free throw line at all despite several forays into the paint. Tobias Harris made just 3 of his 13 shots.
This was not a game the Magic offense was going to win it. But they still needed a bit more. Defense still only carries this team so far. The effort is not completely consistent.
And with the offense not producing much of anything in the fourth quarter, those momentary breakdowns were enough to do the team in. The Pacers matched the only field goal of the final seven and a half minutes from the Magic, a 3-pointer from Evan Fournier, with a 3-pointer from Hill.
That was the kind of backbreaker to finally bury the spunky Magic team. They just did not have it this evening.
A frustrating way to end a frustrating evening for an Orlando team that has been able to survive and find a way for much of the season so far.