Magic (17-28), Pelicans (26-20)
Orlando may be struggling this season record-wise, but the Magic recently posted victories over Western Conference postseason contenders Oklahoma City, Golden State and Portland. They added another squad to that expanding list Friday, using a game-changing fourth-quarter surge to overtake New Orleans. The Pelicans went cold for a long stretch in the final stanza, as the Magic took command on the scoreboard, turning what had been a very competitive matchup through 36 minutes into a convincing final margin.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Magic reserve center Moe Wagner high-fived younger brother Franz Wagner after the elder sibling converted an and-one hook shot to put the hosts up 116-104, with just under three minutes remaining. After it was tied at 95, Orlando went on a 12-2 run to go up by double figures midway through the fourth quarter.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
CJ McCollum, Jonas Valanciunas and Trey Murphy each led the New Orleans offense over different segments of Friday’s game, all finishing in the neighborhood of 20 points, but it wasn’t enough to secure a needed road victory.
BY THE NUMBERS
10,000: Career points for Valanciunas following a third-quarter dunk.
25-11: Orlando edge to open the fourth quarter, turning a three-point deficit into an 11-point lead. It was a 35-19 spread over the entire period.
REVISITING FANDUEL KEYS TO THE GAME
EFFICIENCY ON OFFENSE
Great through a half (60 points, 47 percent from the field), but posting just 19 points in the fourth quarter proved costly. The Pelicans went cold from deep and shot only 29 percent on threes Friday (no makes in the final quarter).
MATCHUP TO WATCH, PART I
You may have thought Paolo Banchero going 2/7 and scoring 11 points would hurt Orlando’s chances to win, but not when Franz Wagner and reserve guard Cole Anthony combined to score 52 points on 16/25 shooting. Dyson Daniels didn’t score a bucket, but his defense and playmaking (eight assists) helped him register a plus-6 over 31 minutes of action.
MATCHUP TO WATCH, PART II
In a battle of second-year guys, Murphy’s 15-point third quarter was a New Orleans highlight and seemed to put the Pelicans in decent position to win, prior to their power outage in the fourth. Selected nine picks before Murphy in the 2021 draft, Franz Wagner was outstanding, going for 30 points, six rebounds and nine assists.
#PELICANSFRIDAY
Critical to New Orleans’ rise over the past two seasons has been the rapid improvement and development of its young players. That could be even more vital over the final 2.5 months, as the Pelicans try to gain the most favorable position possible in the West, doing so at least short-term without a pair of All-Star forwards. In a Twitter poll, fans voted for Murphy’s performance as most crucial to the team’s success in the short term (followed closely by Naji Marshall) with @JuiceDRoid writing, “Trey has a lot of potential. Has the three, has the hops. If he can learn to drive with a defender on him, and get a mid-range shot, we have a B.I. Jr. Naji is a knife already. Jose (Alvarado) just needs consistency.”