The Orlando Magic caught fire in the second quarter and held on, answering every call from the Toronto Raptors, in a one-point road victory.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
| Magic | 27 | 33 | 22 | 32 | 114 |
| Raptors | 36 | 15 | 27 | 35 | 113 |
The Orlando Magic are not a group that has held on to a ton of leads this season. They are not a team to control a game on the road very often of late, even. There were a few moments of shakiness in the fourth quarter.
Each time, the Magic made the push back. They found a way to extend the lead.
Watching the Raptors cut their lead to five with Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan cutting through the lane? A quick timeout and then a 5-0 run to stretch it back to 10. Nikola Vucevic capping it off with a block and a push down the other end that found Jeff Green wide open for a 3-pointer.
It was like this throughout the game. The Magic were in control following a 19-0 run in the second quarter, making shots and getting stops defensively.
Toronto made one last push, but Vucevic and Orlando put the game out of reach at the foul line for an 114-113 win at Air Canada Centre on Sunday.
After a performance where the Magic expressed disappointment and frustration with their play, they responded with a strong overall effort. They overcame a slow start and took control in the second quarter. Toronto never retook the lead despite a strong effort from Kyle Lowry (33 points, eight assists) and DeMar DeRozan (22 points, six assists).
The Magic had each other’s back. They rotated well on defense, even if they gave up a shot. Orlando took each punch and kept coming back again and again.
In the second half, it was D.J. Augustin and the second unit that helped expand Orlando’s lead and build a strong cushion for the final push. Orlando’s momentum did not seem to wane.
When the Magic needed to get a stop to slow momentum, they got them.
It was far from clean. Toronto still had that sense it would muster up the offense and out-talent Orlando at some point. The game was never safe, even as the Magic went up 15. But it sure felt like Orlando was ready to run away.
They did not quite finish the game like that. But Orlando can at least breathe a sigh of relief over defeating one of the top teams in the East and that the team does have a performance like this in them.