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Magic open road trip with 102-99 loss to Bulls

Jason Beede, Orlando Sentinel on

Published in Basketball

CHICAGO — The Magic were hoping to start their five-game road trip off on the right foot.

That wasn’t the case Wednesday night at the United Center against Chicago.

Despite Paolo Banchero‘s game-high 31 points — and a 3-pointer that didn’t count with 0.1 left on the clock — the Magic fell 102-99 after battling back and forth late with the Bulls.

Jalen Suggs (17 points) had a chance to tie the game on an earlier possession but his fadeaway shot didn’t fall in the closing seconds.

Orlando (3-2) led the entire first half, and by as many 20 points, before the Bulls stormed back in the third frame.

Coby White led the Bulls (3-2) with 21 points, while Josh Giddey added 20 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.

The Magic continue their road trip when they travel to Cleveland on Friday for a rematch between last year’s Nos. 4 and 5 seeds in the East’s postseason.

Funky fourth frame

It took more than seven minutes for either side to convert a shot from the floor to begin the fourth quarter.

The Bulls and the Magic started a combined 0 of 24 from the field before Ayo Dosunmu’s running layup at the 4:50 mark of the final frame.

It didn’t help for Orlando that Franz Wagner (seven points) exited the fourth quarter at the 10:35 mark, spent multiple minutes away from the team bench and eventually did not return.

Wagner was battling an illness earlier in the week but was removed from the injury report Tuesday before earning the start against the Bulls.

 

When it was all said and done, the Bulls outscored the Magic 16-12 in the fourth quarter.

Second-unit change

A regular member of Orlando’s first five off the bench, Cole Anthony did not see the floor in the first half.

Instead, Magic coach Jamahl Mosley utilized Anthony Black, Gary Harris, Jett Howard, Jonathan Isaac and Moe Wagner.

Howard went 1 of 3 from beyond the arc in 6 first-half minutes in Anthony’s spot. The second-year guard only attempted one more shot after the break.

Isaac’s return

After missing three games in a row due to a left hip contusion suffered on opening night in Miami, Isaac logged 14 minutes in his first game back.

He played a portion of the fourth frame.

Isaac sunk his first 3-point attempt in the second quarter before finishing with eight points and five rebounds when he added a corner triple in the

Mosley pre-game Isaac was “feeling good” and his 3-game absence was “more about the conditioning factor than it is anything else.”


©2024 Orlando Sentinel. Visit at orlandosentinel.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

 

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