The Orlando Magic will hope to keep their transitory postseason trusts alive and clear the season series with San Antonio when they fight the Spikes on Tuesday in the Alamo City.
With 14 regular-season games remaining, the Magic are just 3 1/2 games away from qualifying for the NBA’s Eastern Conference play-in tournament. At home on Saturday, Orlando prevailed 126-114 over Miami in overtime to end a three-game losing streak that had dropped the Magic to 13th place in the East.
In the victory over Miami, Wendell Carter Jr. posted a double-double of 27 points and 11 rebounds, avenging the Heat’s overtime defeat on Feb. 11. Orlando gave up a big lead in the fourth quarter, just like they did in their previous loss to Miami, but the Magic responded on Saturday, making seven of their nine shots from the floor in overtime.
The Magic were led by Paolo Banchero, who scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Franz Wagner scored 17 points as well. Jalen Suggs and Cole Anthony each scored 16 points, Markelle Fultz scored 12 points, and Gary Harris scored 11.
The Magic have the toughness to make some noise down the stretch, despite their youthful roster. The remaining games for Orlando are all against teams fighting for a playoff spot or postseason positioning, with the exception of two.
San Antonio will play its third game on Tuesday in a six-game homestand that began with mixed results, with a win on Friday against Denver, which leads the West, and a loss on Sunday against Oklahoma City, which only had one player available.
The latter, which ended in a 102-90 defeat for the Thunder, was played with starters Keldon Johnson, Jeremy Sochan, and Tre Jones out because of illness or injury.
It is anticipated that all three will return for the Magic showdown.
In the loss on Sunday, San Antonio was led by Zach Collins, who scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Devonte’ Graham scored 20, Keita Bates-Diop scored 12, and Doug McDermott scored 11.
After falling behind by as many as 17 points in the second quarter, the Spurs rallied to tie the game in the third, but they were unable to keep the momentum up, resulting in their third defeat in their last four games.
