ORLANDO, Fla. _ This might have been the marquee victory the Orlando Magic were looking for.
Despite two straight, late 3-pointers from Philadelphia's Joel Embiid, the Magic, in need of a jumpstart to kick themselves into gear after a lethargic first 30 games, used a second-half surge to fight off the fourth-place Philadelphia 76ers and post a huge 98-97 victory at Amway Center Friday night.
Embiid's desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer put a brief scare into Magic fans, but their team did just enough to send them home happy.
The Magic frustrated Embiid for most of the night. The Philadelphia All-Star center scored 24 points after being held scoreless in the second quarter, and nearly the entire, decisive fourth quarter, with the exception of his two late 3-pointers.
The Magic didn't help themselves late, missing four free throws, including two by former 76ers point guard Markelle Fultz with 22 seconds left, but they still managed to hold on for the win.
Orlando got a solid effort from several players. Evan Fournier finished with 20 points, while Aaron Gordon had 19, Terrence Ross had 17, Nikola Vucevic had 16 and Fultz added 16. Vucevic and Gordon posted double-doubles with 12 and 11 rebounds, respectively.
The teams battled back and fourth through the first two quarters, but as Philadelphia threatened to pull away to start the second half, taking a 62-54 lead on an Embiid 3-pointer, the Magic decided they weren't finished. They ramped up their defense on Embiid, who had seven early points in the third quarter, and picked up their offense.
Orlando rolled off nine straight points and would eventually take control, entering the final period with a 71-68 lead. Meanwhile, Embiid began to get frustrated. He picked up his fourth foul near the end of the third, and after scoring nine points in the first and third quarters, he ended up sitting out for the first five minutes of the fourth quarter.
Philly held a slim 47-46 lead at halftime despite the Magic holding Embiid scoreless in the second quarter. Embiid, who also had two early fouls, had just two rebounds in the quarter, but former Orlando player Tobias Harris picked up the Sixers with 11 points and six rebounds at the break.
Ross came off the bench to score 11 points in the first half to help the Magic keep pace, while Fultz added 10 at the half.
The Magic were without the services of second-year, reserve center Mo Bamba, who turned his ankle during Thursday's practice and is listed as day-to-day. He could be available for Saturday's contest at Milwaukee.
The Magic have tried to bring the injury-prone 7-footer along slowly since he missed 35 games last season, mostly due to a stress fracture in his lower left leg.
This season, Bamba is averaging 15.6 minutes a game in 28 games, scoring six points and pulling down five rebounds per contest. His minutes had picked up after an ankle injury sidelined starting center Vucevic, but his playing time has dropped since Vucevic's return Dec. 15.
Forward Al-Farouq Aminu (knee) and reserve point guard Michael Carter Williams (shoulder) also missed the win over the 76ers.
