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  • Magic end homestand in search of another win as Knicks continue road trip

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    (Photo credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images)

    The Orlando Magic look to complete a sweep of their three-game homestand on Saturday, welcoming a New York Knicks team in the middle of a five-game road trip.

    Orlando is 5-1 over its past six games, with defeats of the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday and Thursday. The Magic were especially dominant defensively against the Clippers, forcing them into 21 turnovers that Orlando converted into 33 points.

    The Magic also parlayed takeaways into fast-break opportunities, scoring a season-high 41 breakaway points.

    ‘Stops to get out and run,’ Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley said, emphasizing he wants that to be a consistent identity for the Magic going forward. ‘That’s the point of our defense. We talk about the running game, but it only comes after you get the stops; not frantic, but the right way. Let your defense create your offense.’

    Mosley also offered praise for Jalen Suggs, who has come alive amid Orlando’s recent surge with strong all-around performances. He is averaging 14.5 points, 5.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game in November.

    Against the Clippers, Suggs was 5-of-9 shooting from 3-point range en route to a season-high 23 points, dished seven assists and came away with a pair of steals in one of his best performances of the season. His scoring pop helped the Magic endure the continued absence of Paolo Banchero, who missed his fourth consecutive game due to a groin injury.

    Banchero, who is averaging 21.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game on the season, last played in Orlando’s 124-107 win at New York on Nov. 12.

    Banchero sustained the injury that continues to sideline him during that meeting and was limited to 12 minutes. Franz Wagner picked up the slack with 28 points and nine rebounds, while Desmond Bane added 22 points, eight assists and six rebounds.

    Jalen Brunson scored 31 points, part of the two-time All-NBA guard’s 28.0 points per game output on the season. He missed the next two games due to an ankle injury — a pair of matchups with Miami, which the Knicks split — but returned to the lineup to score 28 points in a 113-111 win at Dallas on Wednesday.

    Landry Shamet was the Knicks’ hero in that one, knocking down a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:02 left in regulation and another with 31 seconds to go that broke a 109-109 stalemate.

    Shamet’s performance highlighted why first-year Knicks coach Mike Brown said he was intent on the eight-season veteran being a key contributor in 2025-26.

    ‘I was a big fan of him, watching (him) play last year and even prior,’ Brown told the New York Post. ‘For me, having him a part of this team completed the group. Now we have a lot of diverse guys. He’s just doing, in my opinion, what he’s capable of doing.’

    Shamet is one of eight Knicks scoring at least nine points per game in a minimum of 12 appearances this season. His 9.9 clip places him just outside the six Knicks averaging in double figures, led by Brunson and followed by Karl-Anthony Towns (21.5).

    –Field Level Media

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  • San Diego FC push to keep West lead as Dynamo chase playoff bid

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    (Photo credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images)

    Following a winless September, Western Conference-leading San Diego FC hit the road for their final two matches, starting with a Saturday night contest against the Houston Dynamo.

    San Diego (17-9-6, 57 points) is tied for the top spot with the Vancouver Whitecaps (16-6-9, 57 points), who have a game in hand. San Diego finishes the season at Portland on Oct. 18, while the Whitecaps still have home games against the San Jose Earthquakes and FC Dallas sandwiched around a road date at Orlando City.

    San Diego FC went 0-2-1 in September, including a 1-0 loss to the visiting Earthquakes last weekend.

    ‘The most important thing now is to maintain calm, know that we are a good team,’ San Diego coach Mikey Varas said. ‘We have good players. We work really hard, and finding that little extra that we need to make sure that we turn these into not just good, statistically speaking, performances, but wins.’

    The good news is that both of San Diego’s final two games are on the road, where the team has compiled a 10-4-1 mark, best in the league.

    Houston (9-14-9, 36 points) is two points behind ninth-place San Jose (10-14-8, 38 points) in the battle for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Dynamo come in off a 3-1 loss at Nashville SC that saw them play the last 81 minutes with 10 men after defender Erik Sviatchenko was shown a red card for a foul on Hany Mukhtar at the edge of the box.

    ‘We’re still in this thing,’ Houston coach Ben Olsen said. ‘We’ve got to look for some results now and all we can do is take care of San Diego at home and hopefully get the results (ahead of traveling to Sporting Kansas City on Decision Day) where we can sneak in with a win there. Six points still give us a good chance.’

    However, Houston learned Thursday it will have to do it without arguably its best player, Jack McGlynn. The midfielder, who has career highs in goals (six) and assists (eight), will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery for a foot injury sustained in the Nashville loss.

    ‘I am very disappointed that I will be unable to help the club push for the playoffs or join the U.S. national team for this important upcoming camp,’ McGlynn posted on his Instagram account. ‘Get behind the team. I know they will make us proud.’

    Houston won the first meeting at San Diego 4-3 on July 5 as Argentine forward Ezequiel Ponce scored a brace, including the game-winner in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Lynx can eliminate Valkyries with first-round series sweep

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    (Photo credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images)

    The top-seeded Minnesota Lynx look to move one step closer to returning to the WNBA Finals with the Game 2 playoff matchup against the host Golden State Valkyries on Wednesday night in San Francisco.

    Minnesota (1-0) dominated Game 1 of the best-of-three series with a 101-72 rout on Sunday in Minneapolis. It was the Lynx’s second win over the No. 8 seed Valkyries in as many games and third in their last four games overall. Minnesota won Thursday’s regular-season finale, 72-53, and claimed a 78-72 win in San Francisco on Sept. 6.

    The Lynx are 5-0 against Golden State in the franchise’s debut season. With her 20 points in Game 1, Most Valuable Player candidate Napheesa Collier heads into Wednesday’s potential close-out contest having notched at least 19 points in all five meetings against the Valkyries.

    Game 1 also continued a torrid run of late for Minnesota reserve Natisha Hiedeman. She scored 18 points on Sunday, which gave her 63 combined points in the Lynx’s three recent matchups with Golden State.

    Hiedeman was 6-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc in her season-high 24-point performance on Sept. 6.

    Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said via the Minnesota Star-Tribune that Hiedeman ‘is playing at a different level.’

    ‘She is just playing her best basketball of the season. She’s confident,’ said Reeve, whose squad fell to the New York Liberty in five games in the 2024 finals.

    As the series shifts to the Bay Area, Golden State will try to stay alive in part with a more spirited defensive effort. The 101 points allowed on Sunday were tied for the second-most the Valkyries allowed in a season when they led the WNBA in scoring defense at 76.3 points per game.

    Golden State coach Natalie Nakase lamented her team’s foul trouble in Game 1. The Valkyries were whistled for 22 team fouls and had three players with at least four personal fouls: Temi Fagbenle, Kaila Charles and 2025 WNBA Most Improved Player Veronica Burton.

    ‘It takes our aggression away and that’s when I’m not OK with it,’ Nakase said of the officiating. ‘I want to fight fair. I really do. But I love the fact both teams are playing with their all.’

    Despite her foul trouble, Burton finished with 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds on Sunday. Burton averaged 11.9 points, six assists and 4.4 rebounds while playing in all 44 regular-season games. She led the team in points, assists, steals (1.1) and blocks (0.6) in picking up the slack for Golden State after the midseason loss of Kayla Thornton to a knee injury.

    –Field Level Media

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