76ers Hand the Magic Their First Loss of the Season

As we’ll look back on 2020 in future years, we can all agree 2020 was a rough year filled with defeats. Somehow, the Orlando Magic had a chance to escape the 2020 portion of the 2020-2021 NBA season without a loss. Like all good things, the 5-0 undefeated start was all for not, as the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Magic 116-92 behind stellar performances from Seth Curry and Joel Embiid. Embiid had 21 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes of work, while Curry had 21 points and shot 5-7 from the three-point range. Ben Simmons even flirted with a triple-double on Thursday. Simmons tallied nine points, ten rebounds, and eight assists. Simmons even hit his third career three-pointer. Defensively, this was the worst performance yet. Simmons and Embiid dominated, while Matisse Thybulle had nine points and four rebounds, and Tobias Harris pitched in 20 points and nine rebounds.

Game Flow of the 76ers vs Magic

Khem Birch
Without Ross, Fournier, and Okeke, the Magic’s second unit just collapsed on both ends of the floor

After two Aaron Gordon free throws tied the game at 9-9, the 76ers scored on 10 of their next 11 possessions, hitting 9 of 10 shot attempts, during a 25-8 run that created a 34-17 lead. Shortly after the 76ers’ surge, the Magic’s outlook worsened when they lost starting shooting guard Evan Fournier to back spasms. After Dwayne Bacon sank a step-back 3-pointer to make it 44-25, the 76ers went on a 15-2 run behind nine points from Matisse Thybulle. In addition to losing Fournier, rookie forward Chuma Okeke left the game in the fourth quarter with an injury and did not return. A team official confirmed it was an injury to his left leg and Okeke will be evaluated, but did not provide further details. Okeke missed nearly 20 months of basketball while recovering from an ACL tear to his left knee.

Orlando also played without leading scorer Terrence Ross, who sat out due to a right hamstring irritation. Ross first experienced discomfort with the hamstring during the second half of Tuesday’s victory against the Thunder in Oklahoma City. Ross left the game late in the third quarter but later returned and sank two jump shots to help Orlando pull away down the stretch against the Thunder. Through five games, Ross leads the team in scoring at 21.0 PPG.

The Magic’s young stars kept them in the game

Cole Anthony
Even with Anthony dropping 16 points and seven rebounds on the 76ers, the Magic just couldn’t finish the job on Thursday

Even without Ross, Fournier, and Okeke, the Magic still found ways to score and keep the game close. Nikola Vucevic logged his fourth double-double of the season in just five games, with 19 points and ten rebounds. Vucevic has been one of the best Centers in the NBA thus far and should look to continue that in 2021. Vucevic hasn’t been the only shining star that Orlando has been able to boast, however. The Magic’s draft pick of Cole Anthony in the 2020 NBA Draft at 15th overall pick has paid off nicely thus far. Anthony had 16 points and seven rebounds on Thursday, and is now averaging 12.2 PPG and 5.8 RPG through five games. Orlando’s other young guard, Markelle Fultz, has been performing well too. In his revenge game against the 76ers, Fultz had nine points and a team-leading four assists.

Moving Forward

It’s tough to endure a loss in any sports league, let alone it being your first after a picture-perfect start. The Magic will hopefully have Fournier back in time for an inter-conference matchup against the Thunder. The Magic won the first matchup over the Thunder at 118-107. As for the 4-1 76ers, they’ll look to move to 5-1 as they start their two-game series against LaMelo Ball and the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.

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