Shorthanded Magic Flip Switch in 4th Quarter, Beat Hornets for 3rd Straight Win

The Orlando Magic offense, stuck in quicksand for three quarters Monday night, erupted for 37 points in the final period to back up its defense and win for the ninth time in 10 games.

Charlotte Hornets forward Brandon Miller (24) drives past Orlando Magic center Moritz Wagner (21) and forward Franz Wagner (22) during the first half at the Spectrum Center. / Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

Jonathan Isaac's corner three stayed on the rim for what felt like ages, but after several bounces, it mercifully fell through the net.

On a night of otherwise woeful shooting, that three-pointer in the fourth quarter stood out as a change of fortune. The Orlando Magic offense pulled itself out of the mud in time to rescue a ninth win in 10 games.

The Magic beat the host Charlotte Hornets 95-84, outscoring their Southeast Division rivals 37-22 in the game's final 12 minutes.

Three of the Magic's opening-night starters — Jalen Suggs (left hamstring strain), Wendell Carter Jr. (left foot plantar fasciitis) and All-Star Paolo Banchero (torn right oblique) — were unavailable. Then spot starter Gary Harris was forced to the bench with a hamstring strain of his own in the first quarter.

The disruptions meant Orlando's offense was nowhere to be found for most of the evening. But the Magic's fourth quarters this season have a way of overcoming their shortcomings in the first three periods.

The win was the Magic's third straight and ninth in 10 games, improving to 12-7 this season. Even on an ugly shooting night, a win is a beautiful thing.

"Gutsy win. Gritty and gutsy win," Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said postgame. "Bodies down, and we never make excuses – this group doesn't make excuses. That's the second game that we've found a way to win. Guys stepped up, stepped in."

The Magic shot 39.4 percent from the field, 26.1 percent from three, and barely made half of their free throws. But the defense harassed the Hornets into a 7-of-32 night on three-pointers and 27 total turnovers – tied for the second-most turnovers by an opponent in Magic history. Those extra possessions led to 33 Magic points.

"Basketball is a game of mistakes — and we made some — but we didn't let our offense impact our defense," Mosley said. "It's just a tremendous effort by this group to just will that win and get it done by committee."

“We’re some dogs, man. We’re really about it," Isaac said postgame. "We recognize the talent that we have on the defensive end, and as shots continue to not fall [or] fall, we’ve been able to fall back on defense. We just want it, you know. It’s a part of our identity. It’s not something that we try to do, it’s just who we are. From first guy up to last guy on the bench, we wanna guard and we wanna make plays, and it shows.”

Franz Wagner led the Magic with 21 points, 13 in the fourth quarter. The next four high scorers were Magic reserves: Moe Wagner (16), Cole Anthony (16), Jonathan Isaac (11) and Anthony Black (10). The Magic bench outscored Charlotte's second unit 53-15.

Charlotte's LaMelo Ball led all scorers with 44 points and Brandon Miller added 20, but their supporting cast accounted for only 20 points on 8-of-28 shooting.

"We have the personnel. We have people who can defend. We have a great team," Anthony said. "We've proven it on nights so far and a night like tonight, no one particularly shot it well. We shot 26 percent [from three], we shot 39 percent from the floor as a team. It's hard to win games like that, but we just did that tonight.

"We can compete with anyone in the league. That's just what I believe. We've proved that and we're going to continue to prove that."

Up Next

The Magic host the Chicago Bulls the day before Thanksgiving for a one-off contest before heading up the East Coast for a five-game road trip. Tipoff is 7 p.m. ET in the Kia Center.

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