Magic prevail in ugly OT win
Despite missing Jameer Nelson, who was a late scratch due to a sprained foot, despite getting outscored 69-58 from the field and shooting 33.7% from the field (including 0 for 12 on 3 pt FG attempts), and despite getting just 2 pts from the bench, the Magic extend their winning streak to 3 games, beating Sacramento 83-78 in OT. Good FT shooting won this game for the Magic, as they shot 80.6% from the line on 25 of 31 shooting. Meantime, the Kings only went to the FT line 11 times, making 9. A 16 pt. difference at the FT line in favor of the Magic was the difference in this one. The Magic also out-rebounded the Kings 53-49, and had 14 TOs to the Kings 17. The starters had to carry the Magic in this game, as all the starters made solid contributions in at least 1 or 2 statistical areas. Say what you will about Francis shooting only 4 of 20, but he was clutch in the OT and in making free throws. Even though the bench scored only 2 pts (by Diener), Diener had 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and a steal in only 18 minutes of play. Matt, good call on predicting that Coach Hill would use Terence Morris against the Kings, but he only had a rebound and didn't score in 3 minutes of play. Overall, the Magic did a solid defensive job on Sacramento, holding Bibby and Peja Stojakovic to a combined 31 pts, after Bibby scored 42 last Sunday against the Magic. And the Magic proved they could win without one of their best players and scorers in Jameer Nelson. An ugly win, but nonetheless a win!
posted by Mike from Illinois @ 11:17 PM
4 Comments:
At 12:01 AM,
Mike from Illinois said…
Matt, another good prediction by saying that the Magic will have to defend Sacramento well instead of out-shooting them. That's exactly what happened! Good job by Coach Hill stressing defense to the team in this game.
At 7:37 AM,
Anonymous said…
Six straight home wins...That ain't bad, is it? They can do this, damnit, they can do this. They can outlast the Kings with Grant Hill, Jameer Nelson and kenyon Dooling sidelined. Whoever says the Magic don't have depth should really take a look at that. This was the sort of game we wouldn't have won last season, credits to Brian Hill for that.
At 9:37 AM,
Big Figure said…
Boy did i call it,notice who was guarding bibby in the fourth,our stopper "deshawn", bibby wasnt able to just use and abuse deshawn like he did jameer on his home floor! Gutty performance,they could have given up a few times,undermanned they just kept fighting,way to go magic!
At 2:21 PM,
Mike from Illinois said…
Well said, Pete. about the Magic not being good enough just to show up and expect to win. The game plan has to be executed on a consistent basis, and the players have to understand what their roles are on the team and when they are on the floor. Some games will be like the Sacramento game Saturday night... coming out with a win in a game like that is a great sign. Like Big Figure said, Stevenson is becoming the defensive stopper on the opponents' key players, and he sure did well against Bibby last night.
Post a Comment
<< Home