Orlando Magic Grades: Orlando Magic 108, Los Angeles Lakers 104
Nikola Vucevic continues to show the league why he is All-Star worthy with a huge win against the Los Angeles Lakers to bring the Orlando Magic to 10-10.
20. Final. 108. 38. 104
The Orlando Magic defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 108-104 to record the franchise’s second ever season sweep against the Lakers on Sunday at the Staples Center.
The Magic were up by as much as 15 points at the end of the third quarter. But they squandered the lead late as LeBron James completed two free throws to tie the game with just more than two minutes left.
The Lakers were scoreless after LeBron James’ foul shots though as Terrence Ross‘ lay-up put the game away with 30 seconds to spare shortly after.
Los Angeles (11-8) is now 7-2 in there last 9 games with both losses coming at Orlando’s hands. The Magic now gets back to .500 (10-10).
The Orlando Magic lost an ugly one to the Denver Nuggets on Friday 112-87, and it seemed LeBron and company would come back to provide another disheartening loss. It felt that way too with the Lakers opening up as much as a 12-point lead in the first quarter. Orlando’s lethargic start looked similar to much of that Denver game with Los Angeles parading through the lane and the foul line.
But Orlando stayed resilient. Nikola Vucevic even mentioned postgame in an interview with FOX Sports Florida’s Dante Marchitelli they had a good practice yesterday, which certainly seemed needed after Friday’s debacle. They bounced back, outscoring the Lakers 35-19 in the third quarter to take firm control of the game.
They hung on from there, executing well on defense to close out after the Lakers tied it.
It is refreshing to see them close out a tough matchup like the Lakers on the road.
<a href=. G/F. Orlando Magic. TERRENCE ROSS. A
Orlando Magic. BAMBA, ISAAC, GORDON . B-. There was a play where <a rel=. Young Frontcourt
SF. Orlando Magic. JONATHON SIMMONS. B+. After recording only 17 minutes in the last two games and seemingly falling out of the rotation, Jonathon Simmons put together 10 points, four rebounds, four assists and a key block in 25 minutes. It seemingly re-established his place as he started in <a rel=
<a href=. C. Orlando Magic. NIKOLA VUCEVIC. A
C+. <p>The Los Angeles Lakers are still experimenting with some of their lineups and trying to find the right mix of players. There is LeBron James whom everything runs through. He scored 24 points to go with seven assists. The Lakers took advantage of their length and versatility at each position to bully the Orlando Magic early.</p><p>But Los Angeles was sloppy after a strong first quarter. James himself had six turnovers and the Lakers had 18 total turnovers. Despite Orlando’s poor first half shooting, Los Angeles was unable to gain much distance. The Lakers had every advantage but could not take it.</p><p>That is something this young team is still learning how to do. When Orlando got rolling, Los Angeles struggled to meet the challenge. And the Lakers squandered the chance for a win against a grittier Magic team.</p>. 11-8. 7th West. LOS ANGELES LAKERS
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The Orlando Magic take on the Golden State Warriors on Monday at Oracle Arena.