Spurs at Magic
The Orlando Magic have regained some confidence with two straight wins and look to go into the All-Star break with another when they host the red-hot San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night. The Magic knocked off the Atlanta Hawks in back-to-back tight contests after losing 15 of their previous 17 outings to start the calendar year.
“We’re not a team that gives up,” Orlando forward Jason Smith told the Orlando Sentinel. “. … It’s been a rough go the last month. We’re still a good team. That’s still inside us.” The Spurs extended their winning streak to nine against the Magic with a 107-92 triumph on Feb. 1 in San Antonio as LaMarcus Aldridge scored a game-high 28 points. Aldridge matched that total as San Antonio stretched its winning streak to five with a 119-101 victory at Miami to start an eight-game road trip. Veteran Spurs forward Tim Duncan (knee) has missed eight straight contests and is close to returning to the lineup.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (San Antonio), FSN Florida (Orlando)
ABOUT THE SPURS (44-8): Aldridge has scored at least 25 in five of the last seven games and is averaging 26.4 while making 47-of-78 from the field over the past five contests. The Spurs have also been without Manu Ginobili (testicle injury) for three games and Kawhi Leonard has lifted his production, averaging 23 points over his last four outings after scoring 10 versus Orlando. San Antonio leads the league in scoring defense and has been hot on the offensive end, averaging 113 points the last seven games.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (23-28): Center Nikola Vucevic hit the winning shot in Sunday’s win over the Hawks and averaged 25 points in the two games while draining 22-of-35 shots from the field. Shooting guard Evan Fournier, who is third on the team in scoring (13.8) behind Vucevic (17) and versatile guard Victor Oladipo (14.3), has averaged 17.7 over the past three contests. Forward Tobias Harris (13.7 points, seven rebounds) missed the last two games with an ankle injury and is questionable for San Antonio.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Orlando PG Elfrid Payton averaged 16 points and 9.5 assists in the last two victories.
2. San Antonio G Patty Mills matched his season high with 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting in the first meeting against the Magic.
3. Orlando’s rookie G Mario Hezonja scored 14 points and grabbed a season-best nine rebounds in Monday’s win.