On February 5th, the Magic traveled to Charlotte and beat the Hornets. This marked back-to-back victories for Orlando, following a win at Minnesota two days prior. Since those consecutive wins though, the Magic have been on an unusual up-and-down journey utterly devoid of consistency in results. The team has neither won nor lost two games in a row since that early February back-to-back, instead alternating wins and losses each time out. True to this pattern, Orlando followed another win at Charlotte last Friday with a loss to Portland on Sunday evening.
Following an 8-2 start for Portland, the first quarter was a back-and-forth affair, though perhaps not in the way fans might have expected. The Trail Blazers have a bit of a different look to them of late, and accordingly a big chunk of their first-quarter scoring came from the likes of Nassir Little and Drew Eubanks (both primarily bench players for much of their careers), as well as trade deadline acquisition Cam Reddish. This trio largely led Portland to a 31-27 lead after the first period of play.
The second quarter looked perhaps more like what fans might have expected, with Damian Lillard and Jerami Grant carrying the load for Portland and the Magic countering with strong minutes from Paolo Banchero and the Wagner brothers. It was Bol Bol who gave Orlando an edge off the bench, however. Having cooled off somewhat since the All-Star Break, Bol was in tremendous form in this second quarter, notching seven points and three rebounds in two relatively brief spurts of play. Thanks to these contributions, the Magic cut the Blazers’ lead to two at the half.
Neither team could gain separation in the third quarter, which was arguably the best-played period of the game. It was a back-and-forth battle between starting rotations –– a blur of back-and-forth buckets during which Lillard, Grant, Banchero, Markelle Fultz, and Jalen Suggs did most of the damage. The Magic briefly held a lead when a Franz Wagner triple put them up 66-63; after surrendering that lead, they drew even again when a Banchero three made it 76-76. It was Portland that closed the quarter strongest, however, with consecutive threes by Lillard (twice) and Sharpe providing an edge. A pair of Suggs free throws and a three by Caleb Houstan kept the Magic close, but Portland entered the fourth leading 92-88.
By and large, the Magic played an excellent final quarter. Goga Bitadze and Cole Anthony made contributions off the bench, and consecutive baskets by Suggs and Bol around the eight-minute mark brought Orlando to within two. From that point forward however, the game largely became a free-throw competition, with both teams spending the bulk of the final six minutes or so at the line. It was a somewhat bizarre way for a well-played, competitive contest to wind down, and it kept the Magic from making the run they needed. And despite Banchero, Fultz, and Franz Wagner all hitting multiple free throws in the final minutes, the Blazers were just a little more productive with their own trips to the line.
Intentionally fouled with 4.1 seconds remaining and the Blazers up by one, Lillard hit the final two foul shots of the game, and the 122-119 lead held when a Banchero heave missed at the buzzer.
With the loss, the Magic’s bizarre streak of alternating wins and losses continued. On the plus side, if the trend continues, Orlando could be in for a nice upset win against Milwaukee on Tuesday!