Magic Defeat Heated Rivals Miami 105-87 (1-21-24)

By: Kristina Roulo

All Photo Credit: Kristina Roulo

It was another big game Sunday here at the Kia Center. Tonight we witnessed two Florida teams collide, the Miami Heat (24-18) just hours away from home in a match-up against the the Orlando Magic (22-20). This was the first time the Magic’s starting lineup has played together since Halloween on a road game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

In the Press Conference, the Magic Coach stated, “he was extremely pleased with how his defensive line played.” He also stated he felt that the last time playing Miami it was challenging holding them at 99 and tonight was even more of a challenge. In a response to how to have more consistency to get wins, Coach simply stated “They needed to hang their hat on the defensive end of the floor. That’s it.”

Magic star Franz Wagner had been out with an ankle injury for 8 games, he made his return tonight uniting the team’s starting 5 once again. Wagner stated in the post-game press conference, “The team was locked in and their communication on the coach’s game plan came together”.

Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 20 points and Franz Wagner scored 19 points in his return. For the Heat, Bam Adebayo scored 22 points while Jimmy Butler in with 15 points. The final score was 105-87, Orlando (23-20) cruised to an easy win tonight, with the Magic Five back together again Will they be able to continue to build on this win. The next game is at home tonight against the Cleveland Cavaliers (25-15) at 7 pm.