The undermanned Orlando Magic pulled together and got some strong performances to give themselves a shot. But they collapsed at the end.
The Orlando Magic had done what everyone was unsure they could do — give themselves a chance to win without essentially three starters and one of their most important bench players. Nikola Vucevic was leading a skeleton crew on the road on the second night of a back to back and the team was just hoping to show the kind of effort to give them a chance.
They had their chance. And if the Magic wanted to stay afloat, they needed to deliver when that chance came. No one cares about their injuries. Nor will the schedule care about the circumstances. A loss counts all the same.
Leading the Atlanta Hawks 110-108, the Magic looked prepared to hold on and steal a win on the road. Even when Dennis Schroder drew a foul on Elfrid Payton driving to the basket to tie the game, the Magic had the best player on the floor and all the momentum to secure the victory.
Disaster struck quickly though. Jonathon Simmons drove right and tried to turn the corner. Seeing the double team he threw it back up top over his head to Nikola Vucevic. Kent Bazemore was waiting there.
Bazemore darted into the passing lane, much like Elfrid Payton did in overtime in Wednesday’s victory for the Magic, and dunked it to give the Hawks a two-point lead. The Magic came back and worked the ball to the corner to get Shelvin Mack a 3-pointer. But Taurean Prince closed fast and blocked the shot to secure the victory.
The Hawks this time were the ones to escape with a 117-110 victory over the Magic at Philips Arena. A valiant effort, including a triple-double from Nikola Vucevic and a career-high from Jonathon Simmons.
Orlando was left wondering what if and realizing that with so many players out with an injury, they will need a full 48-minute effort to survive and score victories.
The Orlando Magic get a few days off before they take on the LA Clippers at the Amway Center on Wednesday.