ORLANDO, Fla. — For the 76ers, it was the equivalent of chopping down a towering tree.
It took plenty of whacks, but the Orlando Magic eventually came crashing down in the undermanned Sixers’ 107-99 victory.
Friday night’s win at Amway Center improved the Sixers to 10-9. It was the Sixers’ fifth victory in their last seven games.
Meanwhile, the Magic (5-14) have lost three straight and five of their last six games.
Shake Milton paced the Sixers with 24 points while making a season-high four 3-pointers in seven attempts. He also had a career-high 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Tobias Harris added 23 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. De’Anthony Melton (13), Georges Niang (18), and Montrezl Harrell (14) were the Sixers’ other double-digit scorers.
Franz Wagner paced the Magic with 24 points.
The Sixers remained without their three leading scorers in Joel Embiid (left mid-foot sprain), James Harden (right foot strain), and Tyrese Maxey (left foot fracture). In need of an extra body, recently signed two-way point guard Saben Lee arrived at the arena an hour before the game. He dressed for the game but didn’t compete.
When Embiid doesn’t play, the Sixers are at a distinct height disadvantage to a lot of NBA teams. But Friday night was ridiculous against the Magic, who unveiled the third tallest starting lineup in NBA history.
“I like long teams,” Sixers coach Doc Rivers said before the game.
Towering lineup
Jalen Suggs, who’s 6-foot-5, was the point guard. He was joined by shooting guard Wagner (6-10), small forward Bol Bol (7-2), power forward Paolo Banchero (6-10), and Mo Bamba (7-0).
“They are just a big, long athletic team” he said. “That’s why you see the promise. You really do. That’s what they are, and they give problems, defensively.”
Their length has made them a solid zone defensive team.
Banchero was the first overall pick in June’s draft. Friday marked his first game back after being sidelined seven games because of a sprained left ankle.
Dominating the paint
There’s a saying that you can’t teach height. Well, that was obvious as the Magic had a distinct height advantage.
Philly’s starting lineup consisted of forwards Harris (6-9) and P.J. Tucker (6-5), center Harrell (6-7), and guards Melton (6-2) and Milton (6-5).
Reserve center Paul Reed (6-9) was the only player off the Sixers bench taller than 6-7. Meanwhile, center Mo Wagner (6-11) and small forward Caleb Houstan (6-8) were the Magic frontcourt players off the bench.
Orlando used its height advantage to score 18 of 29 first-quarter points in the paint. They ended the game with a 48-40 advantage.
Niang’s second-half
Niang gave the Sixers a big lift after intermission.
The reserve power forward was locked in and his normal fiery self after intermission. That’s when he scored 14 of his points while hitting 5 of 7 3-pointers. He even stared at the Magic bench and yelled ‘Let’s [expletive] go” after hitting a 3-pointer to put the Sixers up, 96-86, with 6 minutes, 57 seconds remaining. Then he had a long look at the Sixers bench after hitting another 3 to put them up 103-93.
Up Next
The Sixers and Magic will play the second and final game of their series here at 6 p.m. Sunday.
