The situation the Orlando Magic faced toward the end of their win over the Dallas Mavericks was one they were familiar with but hadn’t had much success in until Sunday.
After leading 100-92 with more than eight minutes left in the game, the Magic began to wilt on both ends of the floor and trailed the Mavericks 106-102 with 5:16 remaining. But the Magic didn’t falter, outscoring the Mavericks 8-2 in the final five minutes to secure their third win in four games.
In most games, the Magic would’ve continued to stumble in the clutch: the last five minutes of a game when a team is leading or trailing by 5 points or fewer. They had the league’s second-worst record (5-14) in matchups that had clutch situations entering Sunday — which is why coach Jamahl Mosley lauded the team’s calmness throughout its five-game homestand.
“Our guys did a great job of having poise,” Mosley said after Sunday’s win, which secured a 3-2 record during the homestand. “It was great for these guys to experience this and understand what it means. We were able to keep our composure and withstand those runs.”
Even though the Magic’s wins against the Chicago Bulls (Jan. 23) and Detroit Pistons (Jan. 28) didn’t enter clutch situations, they showed their growth by not allowing those matchups to be close down the stretch.
Orlando withstood a mid-fourth quarter run by the Bulls and separated itself from the Pistons early in the fourth to secure victories in those matchups.
“Just playing more consistently throughout the game,” said Franz Wagner, who averaged 19.2 points, 4 assists and 3 rebounds during the five home games. “We were in a lot of games and gave it away within a five-minute span where we didn’t guard anymore or didn’t move the ball well. Now, even when we have a couple of bad minutes, we pick it up a lot quicker. These five games, we got back quickly to what makes us good.”
Because of the struggles down the stretch of games, the Magic have focused on staying calm and composed when drilling clutch situations in practice.
“With us being such a young team, we tend to get sped up at times, including [me],” said Wendell Carter Jr., who averaged 14.4 points and 9.2 rebounds during the homestand. “The beauty in the game is that the game isn’t played that fast. You kind of take your time, especially in late-game situations. That’s something that comes with practice. It comes with practice, repetition and going through those situations.”
The next step for the Magic? Using the lessons they learned at home on the road.
Orlando (11-40) will play back-to-back road games against a healthier Chicago Bulls team on Tuesday and against an Indiana Pacers team that’s struggled in the clutch on Wednesday.
