Magic Gaming Opens THE TURN on the Right Note With Defensive-Minded Win Over NetsGC
May 26, 2022
The Lead
Ever since Jonah Edwards took over as head coach back in 2019, Magic Gaming has prided itself on being an elite defensive team. Opponents these last few years have had a very hard time getting into an offensive rhythm when Orlando has been locked in, which was the case Wednesday in the Magic’s 65-61 victory over NetsGC in their first of five group play games in THE TURN.
Top Magic Gaming Performers
Playing in his first 5v5 game since getting traded to Orlando, Christopher “Duck” Charles recorded a double-double with 12 points and 11 assists to go along with three steals. His pair of free throws with 2.8 seconds left sealed the win. Justin “Snubby” Stemerman, whom Duck is very familiar with having played the retail version of the game with him, showed out as well with a game-high 22 points. Blaine “BigReign” Wilson, meanwhile, notched a double-double of his own with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Clutch Moments
The last few years, Magic Gaming has won a lot of close games because of their rebounding, especially from Robert “May” May, known throughout the NBA 2K community as one of the best on the glass. That was again the case Wednesday, as May grabbed three of his six rebounds in the final two minutes, including one with 18.7 seconds remaining that allowed Orlando to burn more time off the clock while up five. Clutch on the offensive end was Matthew “Matty” Grant, who drilled a pair of left corner 3-pointers down the stretch off well-executed kickout passes from BigReign and Snubby.
Key Stats
Brooklyn only took one free throw in the game, which came with 48 seconds left on an AND-1 dunk by Shun “Streetz” Brown, and they committed nine turnovers. The Magic, meanwhile, accumulated seven more rebounds and five more steals than the Nets.
Quotes of the Night
“I feel comfortable. I’ve been chilling with these guys for three-and-a-half weeks. They are really cool. They brought me in. It wasn’t like any bad vibes or bad blood. As soon as I walked into the room, it was all happy and smiles. I felt welcomed. I didn’t think it would be a long adjustment period. When you go into a new team, new city and you’ve been playing with the same guys for like two-and-a-half years, generally, obviously a switch like that is going to take some time. But I feel like it was quicker than expected.” – Duck
“Most teams went home on the bye week. I know Brooklyn did, for example. I know most of the teams in our group did. We did not. We stayed here. We played. We had a couple off days, but for the most part, we’ve been playing every single day. I know the guys are maybe a little tired, but I think it will pan out in the long run here.” – Edwards
Up Next
Magic Gaming is back in action on Thursday when they take on defending NBA 2K League champion Wizards District Gaming at 7:30 p.m. Making this matchup extra juicy is that it will be the first time Justin “Kapp” Kaplan plays against his former team. Kapp, Orlando’s 10th overall pick in the 2022 NBA 2K League Draft, was sent to the nation’s capital in the four-team blockbuster trade that brought Duck to the Magic. Not only has Washington won the league title each of the last two seasons, but they are coming off a SLAM OPEN 3v3 championship run as well.