Pacers at Magic
THE STORY: The Orlando Magic are five games over .500 but have played two of the worst games in franchise history in a span of five nights with their only win in a four-game stretch coming against the Indiana Pacers. The two squads meet Sunday in Orlando and the Magic again look to take out their frustrations on the Pacers. Orlando scored a franchise how 56 points in a 31-point loss to the Boston Celtics on Monday and then routed the Pacers by 19 points one night later. This time, Orlando is coming off a 93-67 drubbing by the New Orleans Hornets on Friday and the postgame fallout included superstar Dwight Howard criticizing his teammates’ effort and suggesting players should stay home if they don’t feel like playing hard. The Pacers lost to the Celtics 94-87 on Friday. Indiana couldn’t contain Orlando’s Ryan Anderson (24 points, five 3-pointers) and its bench was outscored 49-27 in Tuesday’s 102-83 home loss to the Magic.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Fox Sports (Indiana), Sun Sports (Orlando)
ABOUT THE PACERS (12-6): The 3-point basket has been a big part of Indiana’s early-season success but has also been a huge factor in each of the Pacers’ last three losses. Indiana was just 1-for-19 from behind the arc in the loss to Boston and is just 5-for-43 in its last three defeats, including a 1-of-13 showing against Sacramento in which the Pacers blew a 16-point lead. Overall, Indiana is eighth in 3-point accuracy at 37 percent. The Pacers were 3-of-11 against Orlando last Tuesday when the Magic knocked down 13 3-pointers.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (12-7): Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy is mystified over the recent malaise affecting his team. The Magic were sailing along at 11-4 before the humiliating loss to the Celtics and the bumbling effort against struggling New Orleans where Dwight Howard scored 28 points and the other four starters combined for 11. “We were just awful,” Van Gundy said. “It’s tough to take. We were sitting at 11-4 and playing pretty well and then all of a sudden, other than the Indiana game, have just fallen apart. We have to figure it out.”
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Orlando has won six consecutive contests against Indiana and 12 of the last 14.
2. Anderson missed Friday’s game against Boston with a calf injury but is expected to play against the Pacers.
3. Pacers guard George Hill is shooting 17.6 percent in a three-game slump that began when he scored just two points against the Magic.