Orlando dressed just 10 players and got little production (five points through the first three quarters) from their bench. Glen ``Big Baby’’ Davis had a good shooting night and scored 20 points, while Oladipo added 15 points, five assists and three rebounds.
But they had trouble matching hot-shooting Denver, which hit 50.6 percent of its shots, drilled 12 3-pointers and won for a fifth straight time. Even Denver’s famed mascot, Rocky, hit an over-the–head shot from half court during a timeout late in the night.
``It was a challenge the entire night,’’ Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. ``At halftime they just had six threes, so we kind of had that under control. But their ability to get into transition provided problems for us. It was difficult for us, but we gave what we have.’’
Orlando (10-27) had little chance against Denver (19-17) without its leading scorer (Afflalo), its leading rebounder (Vucevic) and the leader in assists (Nelson) because of injuries. Nelson, who is one of only two players in franchise history to wear a Magic uniform for 10 seasons, left the game in the third quarter with a sprained right index finger. X-rays on the finger were negative.
``I’ll just listen to my body and hopefully the pain goes away by (Sunday),’’ Nelson said of his status going forward. ``We’ve got a day off and we’ll get some rest. … We just have to keep fighting. This is our job and we can’t just go out there and lay down. We have to play hard and do it together. There’s an opportunity for other guys to play and make a name for themselves a little bit. Guys get to extend their role a little bit.’’
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