Orlando Magic Free Throw Struggles vs. Golden State Warriors 'Frustrating', Says Cole Anthony

The Orlando Magic lost its most recent game to the Golden State Warriors partially as a result of some struggles at the charity stripe.

Mar 13, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) shoots the technical foul / Jeremy Reper-USA TODAY Sports

The Orlando Magic has lost two games in a row, with the most recent being a result of free-throw line struggles against the Golden State Warriors.

The team lost 101-93, and that becomes even more painful when you look at the team's numbers at the charity stripe. Guard Cole Anthony talked about the team's struggles and what it can do in his postgame interview.

"It's something we can control, and it's always frustrating when you don't control it," Anthony said. "We getting to the line. That’s half the battle… We just gotta lock in. Whether it’s take an extra second to take a deep breath, whatever it is. We just have to hit free throws, and I'm guilty myself, so I have to work on it too."

Mar 13, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) shoots the technical foul / Jeremy Reper-USA TODAY Sports

The team shot a frustrating 11-21 from the line, or just over 52 percent. And given both the single-digit loss and the 75 percent that the team usually shoots, this becomes even more painful. Magic star Paolo Banchero missed three free throws himself and talked about what would have happened if the team had made those shots after the game.

"Free-throws decide wins and losses," Banchero said. "We lost by eight and missed ten free-throws. We make eight more, we’re in overtime and maybe win the game. Hopefully we can work on them. Obviously, I could have shot better from the line too, so I think it's just a team-wide thing that we gotta get better at."

The Magic is needing every win that it can get, as it is currently trying to rise in the Eastern Conference standings. It currently sits at fifth place and is a game and a half behind the fourth place Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Magic will be back in action on Friday at home against Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. ET from the Kia Center.