Franz Wagner scored 21 points and Jonathan Isaac drained three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Orlando Magic wiped away three miserable frames to beat the host Charlotte Hornets 95-84 on Monday night.
Sparked by its shooting from the perimeter, Orlando turned a 62-58 hole into an 88-77 lead in the fourth and ruined a stellar outing from Hornets guard LaMelo Ball.
Reserves Moritz Wagner (16 points), Cole Anthony (16), Isaac (11) and Anthony Black (10) came through in the clutch as the Magic won for the ninth time in their past 10 games.
Ball racked up 44 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, while teammate Brandon Miller provided 20 points and 10 boards. Ball made 17 of 30 shots from the field, connecting on four 3-pointers (on 11 attempts).
The Hornets, who began a five-game homestand, had won their past four home games. Charlotte, which was charged with 27 turnovers, has now lost four of its past five games overall, though.
Orlando’s Gary Harris, a starting guard, was done after seven minutes of action because of a strained left hamstring. Black picked up the slack in Harris’ absence.
Anthony got Orlando going in the fourth with the team’s first five points of the period. Then Isaac helped the Magic take over.
Orlando ended up outscoring the Hornets 37-22 over the final 12 minutes, but it still shot just 39.4 percent from the field for the game. Charlotte shot 41.3 percent overall.
With 6:57 to go in the third quarter, Ball reached the 25-point mark on a pair of free throws to give the Hornets a 54-49 edge.
The Magic stuck around, though, and they trailed by only four, 62-58, heading into the fourth.
Ball hit a late 3-pointer to send the Hornets into halftime with a 46-42 lead. He had 19 points before the break, while Miller added 11.
No Orlando starter had more than six points in the first half.
–Field Level Media
