One for the road
Fournier, Gordon, Bamba all lend a hand as Magic power their way past Hawks
ATLANTA — Evan Fournier had a huge ear-to-ear grin on his face after the Orlando Magic defeated the Atlanta Hawks 130-120 at State Farm Arena on Wednesday night.
One might figure the big smile was due to the fact that the Magic played well and Fournier helped carry the team to victory with 28 points, 14 of which came in the decisive fourth quarter.
But that wasn’t it. Fournier was giddy over a locker room delivery of a pair of Vince Carter Nike basketball shoes, freshly autographed by Carter himself as he continues to play through his final NBA season.
The Orlando Magic could thank plenty of players for their victory. Mo Bamba controlled the early stages, Aaron Gordon took over in the third quarter and Fournier ruled the fourth as Orlando moved within a half-game of seventh-place Brooklyn in the Eastern Conference standings.
Bamba took advantage of the opportunity when starting center Nikola Vucevic picked up his second foul eight minutes into the game.
The second-year player made his presence known immediately, blocking two quick shots and then taking his game to the offensive end as well. In 11 minutes, the 7-footer scored 10 points, including three 3-pointers, and had seven rebounds and four blocked shots.
He ended the first half with 15 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, nearly tying a career best for blocked shots in a game. He did all that in just 11 1⁄2 minutes. It was Bamba’s most productive stretch of the season.
But the Magic just couldn’t get separation from the Hawks, thanks mostly to Trae Young, who was burying shots from all over the floor. His 34-foot 3-pointer from the edge of the Hawks half-court logo tied the game at 59-59 after Orlando had built an eight-point lead. Bamba buried his third 3-pointer of the half to put Orlando up 48-40 just inside the six-minute mark, but Young kept firing. Young had 26 points in the first half. Gordon took over after the break, scoring 18 points as the Magic started to build a lead. Gordon finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three blocked shots. He had 21 of his points in the second half.
As the Hawks tried to keep pace, Fournier got hot, scoring 14 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter and Atlanta did not have an answer, even with Young, who finished with 37 points.
Orlando (26-32) will be back home to face Minnesota on Friday night at Amway Center.