By admin 
ORLANDO – It’s been a frustrating 11 days since the Orlando Magic were back in their home Kia Center.
Since their last appearance here, they had lost five games and top scorer Paolo Banchero. Without their All-Star forward, the Magic stumbled through slow starts and loss of focus, consistently playing from behind.
The Magic changed that script on Friday night with a 115-88 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Orlando is 3-0 at home and 4-6 overall this year.
“It was great for our guys to find a rhythm defensively, to know exactly what we wanted to do, how we wanted to play,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said. “We hang hats on that end of the floor.”
In the first of a five-game homestand, the Magic attacked the New Orleans Pelicans with a 37-point first quarter, building their lead to as many as 24 points five minutes before halftime.
Then the Magic’s half-court offense lost its way and most of its lead. With 3:36 left in the third quarter, the margin was five points. Just like last week, the Magic seemed to lose control of the moment.
Not this evening. Orlando’s defense, which served as the team’s best offense on the night, found its footing and the Magic once again took control of the game.
Orlando’s best offense was on defense, forcing turnovers and creating runouts after Pelican misses. The Magic scored 23 points on fast breaks and got to the rim with stunning efficiency. Their 74 points in the paint were four shy of Orlando’s franchise record since the statistic was first kept in the 1996-97 season.
“I think we did a good job of building a paint presence early on,” guard Anthony Black said. “It all starts with getting to the rim. From there we make plays.”
For a team with their shooting woes so forward-biased (8 of 32 on 3-point attempts), this is the formula right now: play defense. Take advantage of opportunities when they arise.
That’s what the best version of this Magic team is capable of, given the circumstances they face. Orlando must use its aggression – something Mosley rightly assessed they had not done in previous games – to fuel their efforts. The Magic experienced the full fruits of their labor on this evening.
Franz Wagner led Orlando with 27 points, followed by his brother Mo (17 points), Goga Bitadze (11), Black (11) and Jonathan Isaac (10). The Magic’s second unit defeated New Orleans’ bench 56-18.
The Pelicans, ravaged by injuries, were missing four of their top five scorers. But now the Magic are back with Banchero (torn right oblique) and Wendell Carter Jr. (left foot plantar fasciitis) will miss their fifth and third games in a row respectively, they can only play against the opponent in front of them.
While it wasn’t the full 48 minutes Orlando was looking for, it was enough to wash away the bad taste of a bad road trip. The Magic are well aware that this homestand is full of opportunities to get back on track.
So far they are 1 for 1.
The Magic return to action on Sunday night for the second game of their five-game home stretch, playing host to the Washington Wizards. Tipoff is set for 6:00 PM ET at the Kia Center.
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