Florida Men Hold Off Knicks As Magic Conjure Victory

A stellar performance from Julius Randle wasn't enough to help the New York Knicks survive an ugly second period against the Orlando Magic.

Orlando's Kia Center was anything but a Magic Kingdom for the New York Knicks on Friday night. 

New York was no match for the undermanned Orlando Magic, who took the first of three meetings from their metropolitan visitors with a 117-108 victory. Franz Wagner led the way by pairing 32 points with nine rebounds and four steals, taking on extended duties after depth stars like Gary Harris, Joe Ingles, and Jonathan Isaac all sat out. Reigning Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero was right behind him with a 29-point, 10-rebound double-double. 

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Julius Randle perhaps single-handedly kept the Knicks (17-14) alive on a night that saw them fall behind by as much as 20 in the second half. Randle's statistical dominance (38 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists) was buried under general sloppiness from the Knicks, who mustered only 15 points in the second quarter as Orlando built a double-figure lead that summitted at 20 in the third period. The opening stages of the second, which saw Orlando (19-12) build the foundation for a lead that proved permanent, saw the Knicks hit only two of their first 18 attempts. 

The Knicks struggled beyond Randle, hitting only 22 baskets beyond the two-time All-Star's 15-of-24 effort. Five different Knicks also lost multiple turnovers, part of a 16-loss effort on the night. 

Several false alarms from the Knicks lingered throughout the second, cutting down the deficit to less than 10 on several occasions, partly helped by 10 missed Orlando free throws. But the turnover epidemic, as well as some questionable calls (or lack thereof) in the interior doomed New York to another defeat after falling in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. Despite enduring one of the worst shooting nights of Knicks career (4-of-15, 0-of-4 from three-point range), Brunson hit all 12 of his attempts from the foul line but replays hinted that there could've been more considering frequent contact as he drove in. 

Brunson wasn't the only one struggling from three-point range as the Knicks sank only six on 30 attempts, their worst extra point haul since they had only five in a Nov. 1 loss to Cleveland. Orlando (7-for-33) was hardly any better though Wagner, Banchero, and Jalen Suggs each made the most of their opportunities. Sans Mitchell Robinson, the Knicks also lost the rebounding battle for the third time in four games, doomed to a minus-9 margin thanks in part to double-digit efforts from Banchero and Mo Wagner (11).

A rematch between the Knicks and Magic is scheduled for Jan. 15 at Madison Square Garden.

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With the loss, the Knicks dropped the first two stages of a three-game road trip and dropped consecutive games for the first time since Dec. 5-8, The Knicks will have one more chance to salvage their calendar-year closing road trip, as their 2023 slate ends on Saturday when they face the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse (7 p.m. ET, MSG).