Tristan da Silva leads undermanned Magic past Raptors 106-97

Orlando Magic forward Tristan da Silva (23) drives to the net as Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) defends during second half NBA basketball action in Toronto on Friday, Jan. 3, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

Tristan da Silva scored 25 points to power the undermanned Orlando Magic past the Toronto Raptors 106-97 on Friday.

Goga Bitadze had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds for Orlando (21-15). Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 15 points.

Jakob Poeltl led Toronto (8-27) with 25 points. Scottie Barnes was a rebound shy of a double-double, with 20 points and nine rebounds.

Raptors guard Immanuel Quickley had a double-double in his second game back from an elbow injury, with 11 points and 11 assists.

Orlando guard Jalen Suggs was wheelchaired off the court with three minutes left in the first half after he crumpled to the ground, clutching his back. The Magic later announced he was out with muscle spasms.

Suggs joined a lengthy inactive list for Orlando that included Paolo Banchero (oblique), Franz Wagner (oblique), Moritz Wagner (torn ACL), and Anthony Black (back).

Swingman RJ Barrett of Mississauga, Ont., was ruled out by Toronto hours before tipoff. It was the third consecutive game he missed with an undisclosed illness.

The Raptors' optimal starting lineup of Barrett, Immanuel Quickley, Scottie Barnes, Poeltl and Gradey Dick hasn't played together since last season.

TAKEAWAYS

Orlando: Three-point shooting has been an issue for the Magic all season, coming into Friday's game making a league-worst 30.6 per cent of shots from beyond the arc. But they came out blazing against the Raptors with nine threes in the first quarter, tying a franchise record. They made 19 of 44 (43.2 per cent) of their three-point attempts.

Toronto: Barnes and Quickley worked together throughout the off-season before injuries kept them apart until Wednesday's 130-113 win over Brooklyn. It was expected that their chemistry would continue to develop but both struggled for most of the game against Orlando. Eight of Barnes's 20 points came in the fourth quarter. Quickley was 4 for 17 on field-goal attempts, including 1 for 9 from three-point range.

KEY MOMENT

A 23-6 Orlando run in the final five minutes of the first quarter blew open what had been a close game, with the Magic never letting Toronto back in the game.

KEY STAT

Turnovers have been the Raptors' Achilles heel all season, but Orlando actually gave up the ball 14 times to Toronto's 11. The Raptors' turnovers led to 20 points, however, compared to the Magic's 17.

UP NEXT

Magic: Return home to welcome the Utah Jazz on Sunday.

Raptors: Host the Milwaukee Bucks (17-15) on Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 3, 2025.