Magic at Bulls
The Orlando Magic used a three-game winning streak to climb out of the Eastern Conference basement and are hoping one loss doesn't send them spiraling back down. The Magic, who fell to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday to end the winning streak, will try to bounce back when they visit the Chicago Bulls on Monday.
The Magic began sharing the ball more during the winning streak and handed out another 23 assists in Saturday's loss, something that coach Frank Vogel sees as a positive development. "This is what my teams should look like and this is what I demand of them," Vogel told reporters. "This is the standard of how we want to play -- whoever is in uniform. We're going to play extra-pass basketball and build an extra-pass culture and the competitive spirit on the defensive end is going to be about fighting, getting loose balls and physicality. It takes time for this stuff to develop, but it looks pretty good right now because guys are competing at a high level." The Bulls ended a seven-game slide with a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday but could not make it two in a row over playoff contenders while falling 101-90 to the Washington Wizards on the second night of a back-to-back. Guard Zach LaVine, who played in 12 straight games after returning from knee surgery and recorded season highs of 35 points and 33 minutes on Friday, got the night off against the Wizards but is expected back on Monday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS Florida (Orlando), WGN (Chicago)
ABOUT THE MAGIC (18-37): Shooting guard Mario Hezonja scored a team-high 23 points on Saturday but impressed Vogel more with his work on the defensive end, where he collected three steals and did not shy away from physicality. "Mario Hezonja had one of his best nights tonight," Vogel told reporters after the loss. "Defensively, he got scored on some, but he had some collisions at the rim that I've been begging him to do for two years now. So, he had a big growth night." Hezonja's big night couldn't quite make up for an off night from small forward Jonathan Simmons, who scored nine points on 4-of-14 shooting to end a string of six straight games scoring in double figures.
ABOUT THE BULLS (19-36): Power forward Bobby Portis scored 13 points in 23 minutes off the bench on Saturday but was ejected with under three minutes left after being assessed a flagrant foul 2. Portis went up to attempt a block on Wizards forward Tomas Satoransky and ended up missing the ball and knocking Satoransky to the ground in a scary fall. "I went for the basketball and tried to make a basketball play to help my team stay in the game," Portis, who was suspended by the team at the start of the regular season after punching former teammate Nikola Mirotic in the face, told reporters. "That's what that was. No injuries intended on Satoransky, just competing (and) playing hard like I always do."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Magic PF Aaron Gordon (hip flexor) sat out the last seven games and is questionable to return before the All-Star break.
2. Bulls SF Denzel Valentine recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds on Saturday.
3. Chicago took the first two meetings by an average of 20 points, including a 112-94 home win on Dec. 20.