Knicks at Magic
Orlando opens its final homestand of the season Wednesday night against the NBA-worst New York Knicks in an absolute must-win for the Magic in their pursuit of a playoff spot. After splitting four games on the road, capped by Monday's 121-109 loss at Toronto, Orlando found itself a half-game out of the eighth and final playoff position in the Eastern Conference but also just one game out of seventh and 1 1/2 short of sixth.
It has games against the Knicks and Atlanta at home before ending the regular season at Boston and Charlotte. "It's impossible not to look," Magic guard Evan Fournier told reporters when asked Monday if he was paying attention to the scoreboard. "We're the ninth seed right now, so we have to look at other teams." The Knicks have nearly clinched the worst record in the league but they are coming off a rare victory, riding a career-high 24 points from Luke Kornet to a 113-105 win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday. The triumph snapped a six-game slide for New York, which is flirting with the worst record in franchise history (17-65 in 2014-15).
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), FS Florida (Orlando)
ABOUT THE KNICKS (15-62): Kornet and the other four starters each scored at least 14 points and the quintet combined to shoot 15-of-27 from 3-point range in the win over the Bulls. "We were moving the ball, getting out in transition and playing together," guard Damyean Dotson, who made 6-of-7 from long range, told reporters. "When we move it like that, we get more shots and we are more efficient." Rookie center Mitchell Robinson received his second consecutive start and finished with 14 points on 4-of-4 from the field to go along with 10 rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots.
ABOUT THE MAGIC (38-40): Orlando raced to an early lead at Toronto before giving up 33 points in both the second and third quarters as the defensive lapses began to pile up. "We've got to know who we are," coach Steve Clifford told reporters. "We ain't scoring 115 every night. We don't have that kind of roster. We have to defend, whether we're scoring or not." Fournier led the way on the other end with 21 points after averaging 11 over his previous three games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Magic SF Wesley Iwundu made all seven of his shot attempts Monday and is 13-for-14 from the floor over a three-game stretch.
2. Orlando has won seven straight home games.
3. The Magic took the first two meetings before New York won at home 108-103 on Feb. 26 behind Robinson, who had 17 points, 14 boards and six blocks.