ORLANDO, Fla. — The Orlando Magic secured a hard-fought victory over the Philadelphia 76ers with a final score of 98-86 in a recent NBA Cup match. Franz Wagner was a standout for Orlando, contributing significantly with 31 points and 11 rebounds, while Jalen Suggs supported the team with 19 points and seven rebounds.

Joel Embiid, in his second outing of the season, played for 33 minutes and managed to score 20 points alongside eight rebounds for the 76ers, who are struggling with a 2-10 record this season. Rookie Jared McCain was instrumental in the match as well, racking up 29 points before fouling out with just under five minutes left. Paul George added 13 points but struggled from the field, shooting only 4-of-15.

A pivotal moment in the game came when Mo Wagner, Jonathan Isaac, and Anthony Black led a quick 9-0 run that closed the third quarter, putting the Magic ahead for good. With this victory, the Magic improved to 2-0 in NBA Cup Group A, while the 76ers fell to 0-2.

In terms of the 76ers’ performance, the team has been dealing with significant challenges this season, including playing their initial games without the full roster of their key players — Embiid, George, and Tyrese Maxey. This has placed them in a tough spot in the Eastern Conference standings. On the other hand, the Magic continue to exhibit dominance at home, having won all seven of their home games this season and extending their winning streak to 14 games at home since March 30. They will now face a difficult road trip, where they have only managed two wins against 14 losses since late March.

A key takeaway from this matchup was the 76ers’ struggle in the second half, where they only managed to score four points in a span of nine and a half minutes, which included a 3-pointer from Caleb Martin and a technical foul on Magic forward Paolo Banchero. Meanwhile, the Magic capitalized on this scoring drought to surge ahead with 20 points during the same stretch, stretching their lead to nine points at one point.

Statistically, the 76ers finished the game with an overall shooting percentage of 40.3%, including a 32.3% performance from beyond the arc with 10 successful 3-pointers out of 31 attempts.

Looking ahead, the 76ers are set to take on the Miami Heat on Monday night, while the Magic will kick off a three-game road trip against the Phoenix Suns on the same evening.