By: Kylan Watson

The Philadelphia 76ers continued their Florida mini road trip traveling up to Orlando to face off with the surging Magic who are one of the top four teams in the Eastern Conference. This was an up and down game for both teams, but the Sixers made five/seven three-pointers in the fourth quarter to put Orlando away 112-92.

The Sixers started this game off hot they were able to use ball movement in their early offensive possessions to create high percentage shots which found the bottom of the net. That led to an early advantage for the Sixers and put the Magic on their heels early in this game. The trio of Tyrese Maxey (23-points), De’Anthony Melton (22-points), and Tobias Harris (22-points)  dominated this game for Philly they combined for 67 of the Sixers’ 112-points. Unlike the last game against the Heat Philly finally got a third scorer to show up in this game and take the scoring load off of Maxey and Harris in the absence of Joel Embiid. Melton was that man he saved a lot of possessions on both ends of the floor for the Sixers in this game. His length forced the Magic to take shots from the perimeter tonight instead of being able to attack the paint and take advantage of their length. He had a couple of deflections tonight that led to easy lay-ups and dunks for the Sixers which kept them ahead of the Magic in this contest. An aggressive Melton like an aggressive Tobias Harris is great for the Sixers and if he can start scoring in double digits again and being a sniper from three-point range that will open up even more spacing on the floor for his teammates. This stretch without Embiid has become important for this entire team to get confident and get ready for post season play.  A lot of the Sixers deep post season run hopes rely on players like Melton and Harris hitting their shots when the opportunities present themselves and if they can use games like this to build their confidence it will be a great thing for the Sixers.

The Magic would not give up in this game and they continued to make things difficult for Philly. Their length forced Philly into uncharacteristic turnovers as well which led to easy run outs and three-point opportunities for the Magic which allowed them to trim the Sixers lead to three-points in this contest. The trio of Franz Wagner (24-points), Jalen Suggs (20-points), and Paolo Banchero (19-points) combined for 63 of the Magic’s 92-points. The three of them took full advantage of their athletic advantage over Philly’s defenders and that led to easy baskets for them or their teammates. Philly made the adjustment by putting Robert Covington, Kelly Oubre Jr., Melton, and Harris on them and their length forced them into more well contested shots and they just could not hit those shots. The four of them being the Sixers stronger defenders effectively shut the paint down for the Magic and forced them to play from the perimeter which is not the strength of their offensive attack. Their inability to make shots was the difference in this game, but the Magic are a team that is on the rise and barring a huge setback should make the playoffs and make noise if they get the right matchup.

The Sixers will now prepare to face the new-look Houston Rockets on Friday night, and it will be important for Philly to stay attached to their defensive assignment. Especially against the backcourt of Fred VanVleet and Jalen Green who are not afraid to pull-up from the parking lot if the opposing defense let’s them. Additionally, Philly will need to continue to use ball movement in their offensive possessions to create high percentage shot opportunities like they did in this contest. When the Sixers are hitting their shots they are a hard team to stop if you are an opposing coach and defense. If Philly can implement these things they can get their 22nd victory of the season on Friday.