ORLANDO, Fla. _ The Orlando Magic had every advantage Saturday night against the tanking Memphis Grizzlies, a team that rested its best player and is missing its second-best player to a season-ending surgery.
The Magic eventually made the most of those advantages.
It just took a while.
Trailing by six points with 4:50 to go, their starters engineered a late run as they beat the Grizzlies 107-100 at Amway Center.
Evan Fournier sank a 3-pointer from 28 feet over Dillon Brooks' outstretched left hand with 22.5 seconds to go in the fourth quarter, putting the Magic ahead, 103-100.
His basket capped a 17-8 Orlando outburst.
On Memphis' ensuring possession, rookie Jonathan Isaac blocked a 3-point try by Jarell Martin that would've tied the game.
It was Isaac's third block. Later, with Orlando up 105-100 with 8.2 seconds to go, Isaac fronted an inbounds passer and helped force a five-second inbound violation.
Fournier and Nikola Vucevic each finished with a team-high 19 points while D.J. Augustin and Mario Hezonja scored 16 points apiece.
Orlando struggled with its energy and its transition defense most of the night.
The Magic (20-43) haven't been able to sustain even modest success this season, but they still entered their matchup against the Grizzlies (18-44) as a solid favorite to win their second game in a row.
The tanking Grizzlies decided to hold out center Marc Gasol, their best player. The stated reason was rest; in reality, however, the team hoped to improve its chances to win the 2018 NBA draft lottery by taking a loss.
Wayne Selden Jr. and Tyreke Evans also didn't play, but they are suffering from injuries. Point guard Mike Conley Jr. is recovering from surgery on his left foot.
The Grizzlies played Friday night in Memphis and lost an hour with the time change heading west to east.
The Magic defeated the Detroit Pistons in overtime Friday at Amway Center, but at least the Magic didn't have to travel following the first night of a back-to-back.
Orlando ended its win over Detroit by holding the Pistons to 1-of-18 shooting late in the fourth quarter and throughout overtime, and coach Frank Vogel wanted his players to maintain that intensity on defense.
"We finished strong," Vogel said before tipoff Saturday. "Our defense got stronger as the game went on last night, and they're going to continue to hear that that's the area that we have to really work and focus on getting right. That has been a problem for us in terms of winning games. So we've got to put two games in a row together."
The absences of Gasol and Evans no doubt helped the Magic. On Nov. 1, when the Magic beat the Grizzlies 101-99 in Memphis, Gasol and Evans combined to score 54 points.
On Saturday, Memphis led 79-77 going into the fourth quarter, and then Memphis went on a run.
Martin sank a 3-pointer from the right wing on the Grizzlies' first possession of the period.
Seconds later, the Magic's Rashad Vaughn threw a bad pass that Kobi Simmons intercepted, and Simmons scored on an emphatic fast-break dunk. The play put the Grizzlies ahead 84-77, giving them their biggest lead.
The lead could've been larger, but the Grizzlies missed all four of their free throws early in the period. On the fourth miss _ on an attempt by Ben McLemore _ Grizzlies big man JaMychal Green gathered an offensive rebound and scored on a layup as he was fouled by Isaac, extending the lead to 86-81 and prompting Grizzlies interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff to pump his fist on the sideline.
Green missed his foul shot.
A short while later, Mario Hezonja scored on a breakaway windmill dunk, which finally infused some energy into the arena.
But it took Fournier's long 3-pointer to bring the energy _ and the Magic _ back for good.
