The Orlando Magic will travel to the Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Lakers. Action begins at 10:30 pm ET on Tuesday, Mar. 8 and can be seen on TWC and FxF.
The Lakers enter this game hoping for similar success after topping the Warriors 112-95 on Sunday. D’Angelo Russell was a key piece with 21 points, five assists, and four steals. The Magic, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 119-113 loss against that same Warriors squad on Monday. Orlando still lost despite the best efforts of Aaron Gordon, who recorded his ninth double-double of the season with 20 points and 16 rebounds.
Russell has taken his game to another level over the last five games for the Lakers. During that stretch, he has averaged 22.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 3.4 three-pointers.
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Magic winning the first matchup 101-99. Despite the loss, Roy Hibbert had a standout performance with 15 points, six rebounds, one assist, one steal, and three blocks.
The Lakers have gone 13-51 Straight Up (SU) and 31-33 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 13-51 SU and 31-33 ATS against the Eastern Conference. The Lakers have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 108.2 points during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 97.7 points per game.
Over on the other bench, the Magic have 27-35 SU and 35-27 ATS records. Against the Western Conference, Orlando is 27-35 SU and 35-27 ATS. The Magic average 102.5 points allowed per game, but have damaged those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 113.2 points per game during that span.
In their previous meeting this season, Orlando beat Los Angeles, bumping its SU record over the last 10 meetings to 6-4. The teams are even ATS, with a 5-5 record.
Predictions: SU Winner – Orl
Notes
Orlando ranks 21st in points per game with 100.8, while Los Angeles ranks 27th in points allowed with an average of 107.0 given up.
Orlando scores an average of 99.2 points per away game (ranked 19th). Los Angeles ranks 22nd in points allowed per home game with 103.5.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Magic are 20-8 on the season. When the Lakers score fewer than 100, they are a subpar 5-35.
Both Orlando and Los Angeles have losing records when they allow and score at least 100 points, respectively. The Magic are 7-27 in the former situation, and the Lakers are 8-16 in the latter.
The Lakers have a defensive rating of 110.1 (ranked 30th), while the Magic rank 25th for their offensive rating of 101.9.
The Los Angeles Lakers average a field goal percentage of 41.5% this season. The Orlando Magic have a poor record of 16-30 when opponents have a FG% of 41.5% or greater.
The Orlando Magic rank higher for their field goal percentage (15th) than their effective field goal percentage (19th), while the Los Angeles Lakers rank the same for both metrics (30th).
Los Angeles makes an average of 18.2 assists per game (ranked 30th). Orlando ranks higher in assists with 23.3 (ranked seventh).
Los Angeles makes an average of 4.3 blocks per game (ranked 23rd). Orlando ranks higher in blocks with 4.9 (ranked 15th).
Los Angeles is ranked 12th in offensive rebounding. Orlando ranks 14th in defensive rebounds.
On average, Los Angeles makes 7.1 steals per game. Orlando is a subpar 13-25 when it gives up at least 7 steals.
