Recap: Washington Wizards 93, Orlando Magic 85

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BOX SCORE

With Dwight Howard sidelined with a back injury, the Orlando Magic were able to get by on Monday without him against the Detroit Pistons thanks in large part due to exceptional three-point shooting and, surprisingly enough, good defense.

But against the Washington Wizards, the Magic failed at both of those things and as a result, they lost a very winnable game.

For the game, Orlando shot 11-for-35 (31.4 percent) from three-point range and 36.6 from the floor. Conversely, the Magic allowed the Wizards to shoot 50 percent, with Kevin Seraphin leading the way for Washington with a career night — 24 points, 13 rebounds, and four blocks. For Seraphin, his double-double represented a career-high in points and rebounds, while he tied a career-high with four blocks.

Glen Davis and Ryan Anderson could not stop Seraphin from doing whatever he wanted in the post. Seraphin showed beautiful touch with his back to the basket, sprinkling in righty and lefty hooks on either side of the block like he was, well, Dwight. Seraphin even showed off his range on one possession midway through the third quarter, making a left elbow jumper in a 2/5 pick-and-roll with Jordan Crawford.

While Seraphin was busy dominating for the Wizards, Orlando was preoccupied building a new mansion in Washington with bricks and mortars. In other words, the Magic — after shooting the lights out against the Pistons — struggled to hit perimeter shots all game long. And it wasn’t like Orlando was forcing up bad shots, though they did on occasion. The Magic had plenty of clean looks, especially behind the three-point line, they just couldn’t knock them down.

No shot typified that more than Jason Richardson’s three-point shot late in the fourth quarter. With Orlando down by the score of 86-81 with less than two minutes to go in the game, Richardson attempted a three-pointer on the left wing in transition that would have cut the deficit down to two points and one possession. Yet, even though Richardson had a clean look, he missed the shot and the Wizards eventually held on for the win.

Should the Magic have attacked the rim more to circumvent the lack of three-point shots falling? Perhaps. But it wasn’t like Orlando didn’t attack the basket. For the game, the Magic shot 12-for-23 (52.1 percent) at the rim. Those 23 attempts jive with the amount of shots Orlando attempts at the rim per game (23.1) this season.

No, the Magic’s issue is that they didn’t convert like they normally do. For the season, Orlando’s percentage at the rim is 63.2 percent.

Which brings it all back to Dwight.

This is not to discount Washington’s win. The Wizards came out and played better than the Magic. End of story.

But facts are facts. For Orlando, these are the types of games in which Dwight’s presence would have changed everything. It’s unlikely that Seraphin would have had a career night. It’s unlikely that the Magic would have struggled converting at the rim.

Nevertheless, credit Washington for taking advantage of the situation.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

What else is there to say about Seraphin that hasn’t been said? He took full advantage of Dwight’s absence and put on an offensive display that proves the Wizards were wise to trade away JaVale McGee.

X-Factor

It’s been already mentioned, but Orlando’s inability to hit three-point shots (aside from Jameer Nelson and Quentin Richardson) killed them against Washington, especially with no Dwight to lean on as a safety net.

That Was … Serendipitous?

Losing isn’t fun. But sometimes losing isn’t bad. Confused? With the loss, the Magic are still in line to face off against the Indiana Pacers in playoffs. Not the Boston Celtics or Atlanta Hawks.

Recap: Orlando Magic 119, Detroit Pistons 89

AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

BOX SCORE

In 2009 and 2010, blowouts were routine for the Orlando Magic.

In 2011, less so.

In 2012, it seems like the Magic have become more accustomed to getting blown out than blowing teams out. Instead of Orlando dishing out the pain, they’ve been receiving it.

Which is why the Magic’s 30-point victory — their largest of the regular season –against the Detroit Pistons, without Dwight Howard and Hedo Turkoglu (as well as Chris Duhon, who was suspended one game for conduct detrimental to the team), was probably cathartic for head coach Stan Van Gundy. Not only because it was the Pistons, a squad that has consistently given Orlando a ton of grief in the Van Gundy era no matter how good or bad they are, but because the Magic have been on the receiving end of quite a number of butt whoopings this season. For Orlando, surely a little role reversal never hurts once in a while.

What made this win particularly impressive for the Magic is that they beat Detroit largely with defense. Without Dwight, mind you. Instead of Orlando relying on Dwight to anchor things defensively, the starting lineup of Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, Jason Richardson, Ryan Anderson, and Glen Davis were forced to rely on each other to shut down the Pistons’ offense. And they did.

In the first half, albeit with some defensive lapses here and there, the unit of Nelson-Redick-Richardson-Anderson-Davis did a good job of rotating properly and, when needed, providing help defense. Even when Ish Smith, Quentin Richardson, and Earl Clark entered the game in the second quarter, they were able to help the Magic keep the momentum going on defense.

Although Orlando, collectively, couldn’t keep the Pistons out of the paint all the time, the Magic were able to force Detroit into shooting a lot of jumpshots (many of them contested). And when the Pistons did attack the rim, Orlando did their best to contest almost everything.

That explains, for the most part, how the Magic carried a 21-point lead into halftime against Detroit — defense.

Also, three-point shooting.

Orlando decimated the Pistons in the first half with their group of snipers, shooting 10-for-19 from three-point range. Ball movement and dribble penetration (for drive-and-kicks) were the keys to the Magic creating a ton of clean looks against Detroit.

That was the game in a nutshell.

In a lot of ways, this is how Orlando blew out opponents when they were an elite team and championship contenders in 2009 and 2010. Defense and three-point shooting.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

In the absence of Dwight (sore back) and Turkoglu (facial fracture), Nelson stepped up as the Magic’s primary playmaker and carved up the Pistons’ defense with his scoring and passing (18 points and 9 assists).

X-Factor

After Detroit shot 56.6 percent from the floor against Orlando on April 3, the Magic tightened up defensively this time around. With Orlando’s defense playing on a string all night long, the Pistons shot 40.5 percent.

That Was … Payback

With the win, the Magic avoided an embarrassing season series sweep at the hands of Detroit. And Orlando did so in emphatic fashion, combining defense with red-hot three-point shooting (15-for-28) to earn the victory.

Recap: Orlando Magic 88, Philadelphia 76ers 82

AP Photo/Michael Perez

BOX SCORE

The Orlando Magic aren’t going to win a championship this season. That much is certain.

But amidst all the turmoil, all the drama, and all the BS (as head coach Stan Van Gundy would like to say), the Magic are a good team and capable of doing good things together. Orlando’s win on the road against the Philadelphia 76ers, with no Ryan Anderson (sprained ankle), no Hedo Turkoglu (facial fracture), and Dwight Howard playing through a bad back, is the latest example of that.

Yes, the Sixers are mired in a funk of their own. This isn’t the same Philadelphia team that raced out to a 20-9 start to the regular season. The Sixers are struggling. But in case you haven’t noticed, the Magic have dealt with their own problems all season long. Considering the circumstances, Orlando could have easily folded against Philadelphia and no one would have been surprised.

That’s precisely what happened for the Magic against the New York Knicks on Thursday. Orlando didn’t compete in that game.

The Magic competed against the Sixers. As such, Orlando won the game.

Three players stood out for the Magic — Dwight, J.J. Redick, and Glen Davis.

Let’s start with Dwight. Forget about all his off-court issues for a moment. With a bad back that was clearly bothering him throughout the game, against Philadelphia, Dwight went out and put up 20 points, 22 rebounds, six assists, and two steals. That was his ninth 20-20 game of the season and the 41st of his career. It’s safe to say that this was one of his more gutsier 20-20 performances.

There were times when Dwight just didn’t look good out there, especially on offense. This isn’t to discredit Elton Brand’s defense on Dwight, which was quite good at times (and lends credence to the notion that Brand is one of the most underrated defenders in the NBA). That said, Dwight left a lot of points out there, as he went 4-for-14 from the floor. There were a few instances where he missed badly on hook shots that he routinely makes.

But overall, Dwight gutted it out, shot a decent percentage from the free-throw line (12-for-18 at 66.7 percent) to make up for his lack of productivity in the post, and did his job defensively — both rebounding the ball, protecting the rim, and keeping the Sixers out of the paint when he was on the floor.

As for Davis, for a player that’s had to deal with his own set of issues on and off the court this season, it must be gratifying for him to make a positive impact for Orlando right now. In the absence of Anderson, Davis once again played well, particularly on offense where he made his presence felt the most. As hard as it is to believe it, there was no one for Philadelphia that could stop Davis from doing whatever he wanted offensively. That is, when Davis was doing the right things on offense.

There were times when Davis’ love for the long two got the better of him and he bailed out the Sixers on possessions when he chucked up a shot outside of his range, which is anything beyond the elbows. But when Davis wasn’t preoccupied trying to be a jumpshooter, he was nimble on the low block, he attacked the offensive glass, and he got to the free-throw line. Even though 21 field goal attempts (which produced a game-high 23 points) is normally way too many for Davis, the Magic needed it all against Philadelphia.

Lastly, Redick shut the door on the Sixers in the fourth quarter, scoring 11 of his 19 points in the period. This will be broken down further in a post for Monday, but Philadelphia was forced to assign Andre Iguodala on Redick — one of the best defenders in the league — as the game was winding down. For Redick, that’s the ultimate sign of respect.

All in all, it wasn’t just a good win for Orlando, it was a professional one.

MVP (Most Valuable Player)

Dwight, Davis, and Redick each deserve the recognition. They were the catalysts for the Magic’s victory and without their contributions, the Sixers would have won the game with relative ease. There’s no question about that.

Defining Moment

How about Davis’ third quarter? With Orlando needing a lift from someone, Davis was more than happy to oblige. He scored 15 of his 23 points in the third quarter, imposing his will offensively against Philadelphia.

X-Factor

The Magic’s bench, excluding Chris Duhon, didn’t do the team any favors against the Sixers. Earl Clark and Von Wafer were flat out terrible. As such, Van Gundy was forced to rely on the starters a lot.

That Was … Much-Needed

Considering everything that’s been happening with Orlando the past few days, they were in desperate need of a win. The Magic are a game back of the Indiana Pacers for the No. 3 seed in the East.