Orlando Magic Wins Seventh

The Orlando Magic continue a seven-game winning streak after defeating the Chicago Bulls 111-82 Thursday night.  Dwight Howard put Orlando’s first two points on the board within thirty seconds of tip-off to begin a bloodletting that would not ease up for the next three hours.

The route was spectacular in many ways, but it wasn’t a particularly challenging game for the Magic.  They almost seemed sluggish in the first quarter, like they knew it was going to be an easy night.  An alley-oop dunk by Howard with just over two minutes left on the clock put the fans on their feet for the first time since the national anthem.  It would be one of the few moments of true energy and enthusiasm displayed during the game, by fans or players.

But if Orlando was pacing themselves, not giving the match-up their full effort, it was because such work was not unwarranted.  The announcer might have read the names of Chicago starters as teams were introduced, but they didn’t show up.  What fans seemed to be witnessing was more akin to a casual scrimmage, complete with bad enough ball handling to result in a jump ball with a little over four minutes left in the half.  Naturally, the Magic recovered and Jameer Nelson’s two-point jump shot brought the score to 52-30.

By the end of the half, Orlando had put nearly twice as many points on the board as Chicago, holding an insurmountable 65-33 lead.

Ironically though, it was 90’s night in the Amway Arena with a tribute to music and attire of the not-so-distant past.  But in the 90’s, Michael Jordan was the king of basketball, the Chicago Bulls were an undefeatable dynasty, and a 30-point lead wouldn’t be considered safe by any stretch of the imagination.

That was then.  This is now.  The second half showed no signs of life for Chicago and Orlando went to their bench, spreading the wealth around as every player saw plenty of time on the court.  The abuse continued throughout the third as the Bulls scored baskets, but never gained significant ground.

If there were Chicago fans at the game, they were undoubtedly among those heading out at the start of the fourth.  The mass exit occurred with less than six minutes left in the game when the Magic scored their 100th point.  No matter what the clock said, it was over.  In fact, it had been over for a long time.

The shellacking the Bulls suffered can’t be pinned on any one area of play.  The Magic outperformed them in the paint, converting 55% of their field goal attempts verses 40% by Chicago.  The Bulls had virtually no outside game, sinking only 4 of 16 attempts verses the Magic’s 9 of 24.  And showing consistency at the line, the Magic put down 26 of 33 free throw attempts compared to the Bulls 12 of 19.

Though most of his play came in the first half, Vince Carter still led the Magic in scoring with 23 points and four rebounds.  Howard delivered 12 points, two assists, six rebounds, and two blocked shots.  Top performer for the Bulls was James Johnson with 13 points, four assists, three rebounds, and one blocked shot.

The Bulls will travel south to Miami and attempt to break their losing streak against the Heat on Friday while the Magic go on the road to face off against the Wizards Saturday, who despite being last in the division, have beaten Orlando twice this season.  Perhaps that game is what they were saving their energy for.

By Kimberly Sarmiento, Career Services International