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The Orlando Magic picked up their second consecutive win Wednesday as they knocked off the rebuilding Philadelphia 76ers, 105-94. Nik Vučević led the Magic with 21 points, 16 rebounds, five assists, and three blocks against his former team. Glen Davis scored an efficient 19 points and Victor Oladipo added 18 with five assists, five steals, and eight turnovers.
Philadelphia got 26 points off the bench from Thaddeus Young. Evan Turner came up two assists shy of a triple-double, with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.
Oladipo and Vučević carried the Magic early. The Sixers' big-man rotation of Daniel Orton and Lavoy Allen offered Vučević little resistance inside, allowing him to finish there with relative ease. He also bagged a pair of open, in-rhythm jumpers in the first period. All told, Vučević went 5-of-5 from the floor for 11 points in the opening quarter against his former team. Oladipo, for his part, shot 4-of-6 from the field for 10 points of his own, with all four of his makes coming inside the restricted circle.
The Magic built a 33-27 lead after one, with rookie point guard Michael Carter-Williams keeping the Sixers in the game with 10 points and two three-pointers. His outside shooting, much-improved from his horrid Orlando Pro Summer League performance, kept the Magic off balance and had to make them at least think twice about leaving him open.
After a scoreless first period, Davis made his presence felt in the second, going 5-of-5 from the floor for 11 points. Some of his success is a product of skill, but luck played into it too: the veteran big man hit two end-of-shot-clock jumpers, with one of those makes banking in.
Orlando's offense stalled after the last of Davis' end-of-clock heaves: the Magic didn't score a single point in the final 3:57 of the first half, allowing the Sixers to trim their 15-point deficit to five at the horn. Orlando committed five turnovers and missed two shots in that span, three if one counts Oladipo's heave at the end of the half. Young scored eight of Philadelphia's 10 points in that 10-0 run.
Arron Afflalo was conspicuous in his first-half absence: though he logged 17 minutes, he managed just three points on 1-of-5 shooting. Philadelphia tilted its defense toward him and was geared to limit his touches, enabling Vučević, Davis, and Oladipo to shine in the first half.
Afflalo involved himself in Orlando's offense more in the third quarter, but shot just 2-of-6 for four points and an assist. Once again, Vučević, Oladipo, and Davis had to shoulder the load. That trio and E`Twaun Moore combined for 16 of the Magic's 22 points in the quarter. The Magic ended the period clinging to a four-point lead.
Both teams struggled throughout the fourth quarter to string multiple baskets together; it was less a function of good defense and more a product of poor offense. But at the 3:03 mark, Oladipo connected on a spot-up three from the left wing off a Moore feed to give the Magic a nine-point edge, a key basket given how anemic Philly' offense had been. The Sixers never challenged after that make.
