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  • Ja Morant dazzles in return, Grizzlies rout Magic in London

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    (Photo credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images)

    Ja Morant returned to the lineup after missing the previous six games with a right calf contusion and had 24 points and a season-high 13 assists to lead the Memphis Grizzlies to a 126-109 victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday in London.

    Morant, the subject of trade discussions ahead of the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline, made 7 of 13 shots, including 3 of 4 from long range. He was appearing in just his 19th game of the season.

    Jock Landale came off the bench to contribute 21 points and eight rebounds for the Grizzlies, while Jaren Jackson Jr. finished with 17 points and five boards. Rookie Cedric Coward scored 13 points.

    Orlando, which beat Memphis 118-111 Thursday in Berlin, was led by Anthony Black with 19 points and six assists. Wendell Carter Jr. had 18 points and seven boards and Paolo Banchero finished with 16 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Franz Wagner had 14 points.

    Morant played at an All-Star level from the outset. He had six assists in the opening six minutes and finished the first half with 20 points and 10 assists in 15 minutes to pace the Grizzlies to a 72-53 lead at the break.

    While Memphis led by 19 at halftime, it had built a 33-point cushion midway through the second quarter with a 23-7 run. Orlando regrouped to finish the half on a 23-9 run.

    But in the second half the Grizzlies, who had squandered large leads in their previous three games, never allowed the Magic to close the gap. Although Orlando trimmed the Memphis advantage to 16 points to start the third quarter on a 3-pointer from Black, the Grizzlies consistently pushed their lead to 20 or more until the waning minutes.

    The London matchup had an All-Star Game feel. Commissioner Adam Silver was in attendance, as were former league All-Stars Isaiah Thomas, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Pau Gasol and Detlef Schrempf.

    –Field Level Media

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  • Magic look for elusive second straight win, battle Wizards

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    (Photo credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images)

    The Orlando Magic have been unable to record consecutive victories since stringing three wins together back on Nov. 25 to Dec. 1.

    Fresh off an offensive uprising, the Magic will look to do precisely that on Tuesday when they visit the Washington Wizards.

    Desmond Bane scored 31 points and Paolo Banchero added 28 to go along with 12 rebounds on Sunday, lifting Orlando to a 135-127 home victory over the reeling Indiana Pacers.

    ‘Much better offensively, but we’ve still got to figure out how to string together some stops on the defensive end,’ Bane said. ‘We got a few when it mattered, but we’re better than that on that end, for sure.’

    Anthony Black collected 27 points and 10 assists in his return to the starting lineup for the Magic, who finished with a spirited effort to record their fifth win in nine games.

    ‘We just did a good job of staying poised,’ Banchero said. ‘(The Pacers) kept making shots and we were just able to come down and execute late in the game in the fourth quarter.’

    While the offensive numbers were impressive, the performance on the other side of the floor left a bit to be desired as Orlando played without guard Jalen Suggs. The defensive star sustained a Grade 1 MCL contusion in his right knee during Friday’s setback against the Chicago Bulls.

    ‘It’s just going to be collective,’ Bane said of the team’s plan as a means to overcome the loss of Suggs. ‘That’s been our identity and something that we have to lean into. Losing a guy like Jalen, you’ve got to lean into it even more.’

    Banchero scored 28 points on 9-of-15 shooting from the floor with 11 rebounds in Orlando’s 125-94 rout in Washington on Nov. 1.

    Like the Magic, the Wizards were rather generous in their last game. The Minnesota Timberwolves scored at least 33 points per quarter and shot a robust 56.1% from the floor in a 141-115 rout of Washington on Sunday.

    Gaudy numbers to be certain, however that came on the heels of the Wizards surrendering just 99 points against the Brooklyn Nets on Friday.

    ‘Thankfully over the course of the last 15 games or so, we’ve proven this isn’t who we are, so it feels like more of fluke than a bad trend,’ Corey Kispert said of the game versus Minnesota, per the Washington Post.

    CJ McCollum finished with 20 points against the Timberwolves, marking the 13th time that he has scored at least that many points in a game this season.

    McCollum, who averages a team-best 18.6 points per game, was quick to credit with what he views as the future of the Wizards, players such as Alex Sarr (17.2 ppg), injured Kyshawn George (15.0) and Bilal Coulibaly (9.9).

    ‘They’re handpicking the right guys … they have all these guys with intangibles with skillsets with the ability to grow and evolve and develop,’ McCollum said in an appearance with the Club 520 Podcast.

    ‘The sky’s the limit in the next three years. They’re boys, that’s the scary part. Real dogs when they’re 24-25.’

    –Field Level Media

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  • NBA roundup: Lakers win 5th straight, clinch West Group B

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    (Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images)

    Luka Doncic scored 24 of his 43 points in the first quarter and finished with 13 assists and nine rebounds as the host Los Angeles Lakers notched a 135-118 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday to clinch West Group B of the NBA Cup.

    Austin Reaves scored 18 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter and collected nine rebounds for the Lakers, who won their fifth consecutive game. LeBron James added 25 points, six rebounds and six assists, and Rui Hachimura had 13 points.

    The Lakers improved to 3-0 in NBA Cup play while the Clippers fell to 2-1. The Clippers are still in the running for a wild-card spot.

    James Harden recorded 29 points and nine assists and Kawhi Leonard and Kris Dunn scored 19 points apiece for the Clippers, who have lost 11 of their past 13 games. John Collins posted 18 points, and Ivica Zubac added 10 points and 10 rebounds.

    Wizards 132, Hawks 113

    CJ McCollum scored a season-high 46 points on 10 3-pointers, leading Washington to a rare victory over visiting Atlanta in NBA Cup group play.

    Alex Sarr had 27 points and 11 rebounds, while Corey Kispert totaled 19 points for the Wizards, who led by as many as 33 points and snapped a 14-game losing streak. Khris Middleton had 10 points and 12 assists and Bub Carrington scored 10 for Washington, which never trailed in the win.

    Kristaps Porzingis led Atlanta with 22 points, followed by Onyeka Okongwu’s 20 and Zaccharie Risacher’s 17. Dyson Daniels finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Hawks, who had their two-game winning streak snapped. Vit Krejci tallied 10 points in the loss.

    Magic 144, 76ers 103

    Anthony Black scored a career-high 31 points to highlight Orlando’s annihilation of host Philadelphia in an NBA Cup game.

    Black scored 27 points in the first half, including a 20-point second quarter as Orlando set a franchise record for points in any quarter with 51 in the stanza. The team also set a franchise mark with 86 points in the first half. Despite continuing to play without Paolo Banchero (groin), the Magic had nine players score in double figures, including Franz Wagner (21) and Desmond Bane (15). The team compiled 82 bench points — the top total in the NBA this season.

    Tyrese Maxey scored 20 points to pace Philadelphia, while Jared McCain pitched in with 15 points. The Sixers played without Joel Embiid, Paul George and VJ Edgecombe, among others.

    –Field Level Media

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  • UCF escapes pesky Hofstra for four-point win

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    (Photo credit: Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images)

    Riley Kugel scored 19 points for host UCF, which held off upset-minded Hofstra to earn an 82-78 win in the season opener for both schools Monday night in Orlando, Fla.

    Jordan Burks had 17 points and a team-high seven rebounds for UCF, which didn’t return anyone who scored for the team last season. Kugel transferred to the Knights from Mississippi State while Burks arrived from Georgetown.

    Themus Fulks, a transfer from Milwaukee, added 16 points with eight assists and hit the tiebreaking long 2-pointer that gave the Knights the lead for good at 66-64 with 7:38 left.

    Another Milwaukee transfer, Jamichael Stillwell, finished with 10 points.

    The Knights were 22 of 36 from the foul line, including 17 of 23 in the second half.

    Cruz Davis scored 17 points while true freshman Preston Edmead had 16 points and a team-high six assists for Hofstra, a member of the Coastal Athletic Association.

    German Plotnikov finished with 13 points for the Pride. Silas Sunday added 10 points and six rebounds.

    Hofstra took a 16-7 lead to open the game before UCF went on a 29-11 run to take its biggest lead at 36-27.

    The Pride scored the final five points of the first half to begin a 30-18 run that ended with Joshua DeCady’s layup and Edmead’s free throw to put the visitors ahead 57-54 with 10:47 to go.

    UCF scored 10 of the next 14 points before Edmead tied the game for the final time with a 3-pointer with 8:10 left. The Knights expanded their lead to eight points twice, the last at 79-71, before Hofstra got within three points twice in the final minute.

    UCF’s Devan Cambridge missed a pair of free throws with 16 seconds left, but Burks pulled down the rebound and Fulks iced the win by sinking his second free throw six seconds later.

    –Field Level Media

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