The LA Clippers wore down the Orlando Magic as the shots would not fall for the Magic and the defense could no longer hold the team up.
Coach Steve Clifford did not have chance to review the game film immediately after the Orlando Magic lost 106-96 to the LA Clippers at STAPLES Center on Sunday. He suspected he would like most of what he saw. A team that was working to get generally good shots and a team that played solidly defensively aside from a few critical mistakes down the stretch.
Still, at the end of the day, the game has one point — to make shots. And while he, like former Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, would say that a coach cannot control whether his team makes or misses shots. That is still what has to happen in the end.
Up by 15 once again in the first half, Orlando could not generate enough offense to maintain the lead. Even with a defense that was playing admirably, it too would eventually crack with the Clippers’ depth.
Lou Williams, mired in shooting struggles for much of the game, broke through with 12 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter and the Magic could not hit much of anything — 9 for 21 from the floor in the quarter. Eventually, everything cracked and the Clippers extended their lead out to 15.
Orlando shot 37.1 percent from the floor and 9 for 31 from beyond the arc. The team was never really able to get itself going. The Magic got stops and got to the foul line early to boost their play. But that no longer was sustainable into the final stages of the game.
There Orlando made the mistakes it had done so well to avoid. The team went under on several screens from Williams, allowing him to get free for open shots. He has been terrorizing the Magic like that for years.
The strong rebounding that helped Orlando stake its lead evaporated as Montrezl Harrell attacked the paint and the glass more effectively.
But it all came back to the Magic’s inability to hit shots. The Clippers recognized this and packed the paint, daring the Magic to make shots. They could not. And the game went out that simply.
The Orlando Magic turn around and go right back to work Monday night against the Sacramento Kings as their road trip continues.