The Orlando Magic put a decisive end to their four-game losing streak Thursday evening at the Spectrum Center with a convincing 123-107 victory over the Charlotte Hornets.
Coming off a 144-117 drubbing at the hands of the Miami Heat on Tuesday night, Charlotte was unable to find their form in their second consecutive defeat to a Floridian divisional foe.
With players on both teams donning pink sneakers in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Night, the Magic got off to a sizzling start in the first quarter, hitting six of their first seven shots and eleven out of their first fifteen, jumping out to an early 27-14 lead in the process.
They finished the first frame with 38 points, matching their season high for a quarter.
The Hornets, who started three rookies in Sion James, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Kon Knueppel, managed to trim their deficit to seven points by the end of the quarter thanks to some tough interior play by Moussa Diabate and perimeter scoring from LaMelo Ball.
A sloppy start to the second quarter for the Hornets saw the Magic extend their lead back to 13 points five minutes in, but the Hornets hung tough and managed to stay within striking distance before the Magic got hot from three-point land to end the half back up 13 after a 33-point quarter.
The Hornets made things interesting in the third, ramping up the defensive pressure to hold Franz Wagner scoreless after his strong first half and the Orlando team to 8/20 shooting for 21 points, but things got away from Charlotte in the final frame, as turnovers and Orlando’s three-point shooting proved to be too much to overcome for the home team.
Keys to the Game
After being listed as questionable earlier in the day, Franz Wagner got the start for the Magic and had a strong outing, putting up 21 points on 8/16 shooting with 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. One of five Orlando players with 18 or more points, Wagner set the tone early with 7 points in the first two minutes of the game and 18 first half points on 7/10 shooting.
As he’s done many times already in his young professional career, Paolo Banchero stuffed the stat sheet against the Hornets, finishing with 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists.
The trio of Anthony Black, Wendell Carter Jr., and Tristan da Silva shot lights out for the Magic and combined to score 57 points on 19 for 33 shooting, including 9 for 18 from three.
The Hornets had no answers for the Magic’s three-point shooting. Orlando finished at just over 42% for the game, with a season-high 16 makes out of 38 attempts.
Charlotte ended up with 21 turnovers, including a couple at pivotal moments of the game that halted their momentum as they were mounting a comeback and putting some pressure on their opponent.
Brandon Miller sat out for a third straight game with a shoulder subluxation, which is a partial dislocation.
Buzz Bright Spots
Ryan Kalkbrenner continued his impressive start to his NBA career, as he finished with 17 points on 8 for 9 shooting along with 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. Kalkbrenner’s shooting percentage for the season actually went down after the game from 90.5% to 90%. He is 27/30 from the field in his first five games.
Moussa Diabate showed some great activity in the paint with 6 rebounds, including 4 offensive, 2 blocks and some tough finishes on his way to 10 points.
Buzz-Worthy Facts
Sion James’ start was the first of his NBA career. He was one of four former Duke Blue Devils on the floor to start the game, joining former college teammate and current teammate Kon Knueppel as well as Magic starters Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr.
In total, five former Dukies saw action, as Tyus Jones also made an appearance for Orlando, chipping in 5 points in 14 minutes.
34 years ago today, on October 30th 1991, the Hornets signed their overall number one NBA draft pick Larry Johnson of UNLV — Grandmama — to a six-year deal worth just under $20 million.
What’s Next
Charlotte next takes the court this Saturday evening at home against Minnesota, the first game of a back-to-back that concludes with a home matchup against the Utah Jazz on Sunday. Both games are set for 6 pm.
Orlando will travel to Washington D.C. Saturday to take on the Wizards in their second consecutive game against a divisional opponent, prior to taking on the Hawks in Atlanta in a nationally-televised game next Tuesday evening.
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