The Orlando Magic were playing from behind from the start, and poor energy to start the first and second half were too much to overcome.
The problems started late in the second quarter. That is when the Orlando Magic, having fought to get back into the game and take a brief lead saw things begin to slip away. Things slipping away thanks to dribble penetration from replacement point guard Tomas Satoransky and post-ups from Markieff Morris and jumpers from Otto Porter.
Really, the Magic were out of the game from the start, following a sluggish start to the game. Turnovers and poor offensive execution — along with a dose of poor shooting — put the Magic behind. And it kept them behind throughout the second half.
The Washington Wizards used a 31-22 third quarter to bury the Orlando Magic and lead by as much as 24 points in a 115-98 win at the Amway Center. The Magic would not get their first win streak since November. The team did not have the same spark on offense that it had in Wednesday’s win.
And the defense was never there. The Wizards attacked the Magic at every opportunity and found too little resistance.
Washington shot 54.1 percent from the floor and added 12 offensive rebounds to boot. The Wizards were in constant attack mode and found matchups they liked against the Magic on every turn. The exploited those matchups whether it was Otto Porter against Evan Fournier or Markieff Morris against Mario Hezonja. Whatever matchup Washington wanted, it got.
Orlando was unable to answer. The Magic shot just 44.2 percent from the floor for the game and added 10-for-32 shooting from beyond the arc. the team was not getting the buckets it needed to stay in the game.
Once that second-quarter run died down, the Magic were unable to keep pace. The offense was not there and the team could not get any stops.
Twenty turnovers, including five from Mario Hezonja, did not help the cause. The Wizards turned those 20 turnovers into 15 points. And the Magic never stood a chance. Not with the poor execution and poor shooting.
Orlando is headed back to the drawing board. And hoping for some health.
Next: John Hammond expects Orlando Magic to focus on long term
The Orlando Magic are back in action Monday in Miami against the Miami Heat.