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Denton: Magic vs. Hawks Analysis (1/22/14)

Josh Cohen
Digital News Manager

By John Denton Jan. 22, 2014

ORLANDO – After having put so much into the past 24 hours, battling through the fatigue of harrowing travel from snowy New York, playing a second game in as many nights and overcoming a daunting 19-point deficit, it pained the Orlando Magic greatly to lose to rival Atlanta on Wednesday.

For much of the final 17 minutes of the game against the Hawks, Orlando seemed poised to not only capture a feel-good win but also to equal their largest come-from-behind victory of the season. A Magic team that didn’t get back into Central Florida until after 3 a.m. surprisingly rose from the dead in the second half to go from down 19 points to up by five with just less than 3 minutes to play.

But that’s where the feel-good story ended for a Magic team that missed four of its last six shots – including two late tries by Jameer Nelson and a short jumper by Glen ``Big Baby’’ Davis – as the Atlanta Hawks rallied for a 112-109 victory.

``It’s tough really because we had this one won,’’ said Magic guard Victor Oladipo, who played an extremely efficient game with 24 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. ``We’ve got to do a better job of playing `D’ down the stretch without fouling.’’

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