Magic Struggle From Distance, Lose 4th Straight vs. Knicks

The Orlando Magic was hoping for a win tonight at Madison Square Garden. However, the New York Knicks were the better team Monday night.

Jeremy Brener | Oct 24, 2022

Magic Struggle From Distance, Lose 4th Straight vs. Knicks /

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ORLANDO - The Orlando Magic is still in pursuit of its first win of the season following a 115-102 loss to the New York Knicks Monday night at Madison Square Garden.

Similar to the first three games, the Magic hung tough with the opponent throughout the entire game but was unable to make things happen in the fourth quarter.

With 4:25 left in the game, the Magic was within two possessions of the Knicks, but the team missed seven of eight shots while New York took advantage and won the game.

"I feel like down the stretch, we just gotta come together and be on the same page as far as shots," Bol Bol said.

The two areas that you would point to as to why the Magic lost the game would be second-chance points and three-point percentage. The Knicks had 26 second-chance points off of 18 offensive rebounds and the Magic shot just 20.6 percent from the three-point line, making just 7 of 34 attempts.

"I would've liked to see the ball move a little bit more," coach Jamahl Mosley said. "There were some shots that we were getting that just weren't falling. We keep telling our guys that we can't always rely on shots being made. We have to keep our heads down and focus on the defensive end of the floor."

When you take as many threes as the Magic do, the shots have to go in at a higher clip. Otherwise, it may be smart to take higher-percentage looks.

Arguably, tonight was the Magic's poorest showing in four games so far. However, there were some bright spots. No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero led the team with 21 points, while Bol Bol added 19 off the bench.

The Magic's road trip continues Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

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Published Oct 24, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.