FLORIDA – Orlando Magic handed Golden State Warriors its third straight defeat with a 130-129 escape in the 2022-2023 NBA Season on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines) at the Amway Center in Orlando.
Jalen Suggs caught fire in the endgame to finish with 26 points to go with nine assists, while top-overall pick Paolo Banchero added 22 points and eight rebounds as the Magic improved to 2-7 slate.
Franz Wagner contributed 19 points, Chuma Okeke had season-high 16 points, while R.J. Hampton, Wendell Carter Jr. and Kevon Harris ended with 15, 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the Magic.
Down by as much as 15 points in the third quarter, the Magic went on a spirited fight back behind Banchero, Hampton, Suggs and Okeke to surge to a 115-108 advantage.
The Warriors fought back and even took a 123-122 lead behind Stephen Curry’s conversions but Suggs countered with two free throws, a triple and two freebies for a 130-126 edge.
Golden State made its last push at 129-130 via a triple by Klay Thompson. The Warriors had a chance to win it after an Orlando turnover but Thompson missed his floater at the buzzer.
Curry finished with 39 points, including eight triples, Thompson added 27 markers with seven treys, while Kevon Looney, Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole had 17, 15 and 11 as the defending champions Warriors dropped to 3-6.
Meanwhile, Jeff Green sparked Denver Nuggets’ (5-3) fourth quarter pull away to defeat Oklahoma City Thunder (4-4), 122-110, at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
After seeing the early double-digit lead cut to 103-104, Green unloaded five straight points coupled by a three-pointer from Michael Porter Jr. to take a 114-103 edge.
The Thunder attempted to come close after a triple by Luguentz Dort, but the Nuggets got conversions from Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokić to seal their victory.
Green finished with seven points, five in the fourth quarter, Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray had 27 and 24 points, respectively, while Jokić had triple-double 15 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds for Denver.
BOX SCORE:
ORLANDO 130 — Suggs 26, Banchero 22, F. Wagner 19, Okeke 16, Hampton 15, Carter 14, Harris 12, Bol 4, Houstan 2, Bamba 0.
GOLDEN STATE 129 — Curry 39, Thompson 27, Looney 17, Wiggins 15, Poole 11, D. Green 8, J. Green 7, Wiseman 2, Jerome 2, Moody 1.
Quarterscores: 30-30, 53-65, 96-98, 130-129./PN
