Halftime Report
The Magic are giving their home crowd exactly what they were hoping for. They have jumped out to a 57-56 lead against the Knicks.
The Magic came into the matchup with some extra motivation after the defeat they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
New York Knicks @ Orlando Magic
Current Records: New York 20-10, Orlando 19-13
How To Watch
- When: Friday, December 27, 2024 at 7 p.m. ET
- Where: Kia Center — Orlando, Florida
- TV: FanDuel SN – Florida
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $64.00
What to Know
The New York Knicks and the Orlando Magic will round out the year against one another at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday at at Kia Center. The Knicks are looking to tack on another W to their five-game streak on the road.
The Knicks are headed into the contest having just posted their closest victory since November 15th on Wednesday. They had just enough and edged the Spurs out 117-114.
Mikal Bridges was nothing short of spectacular: he went 6 for 9 from beyond the arc en route to 41 points plus two steals and two blocks. What’s more, he also posted a 66.7% three-point shooting accuracy, which is the highest he’s posted since back in October. Less helpful for the Knicks was Jalen Brunson’s abysmal 0-5 three-point shooting.
The Knicks smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 17 offensive rebounds. That’s a new trend for them: they were averaging 9.1 offensive rebounds per game earlier this season, but in their last five games they’ve averaged 12.6.
Meanwhile, the point spread may have favored the Magic on Thursday, but the final result did not. They lost 89-88 to the Heat on a last-minute shot From Tyler Herro. Orlando got off to an early lead (up 17 with 5:36 left in the first quarter), but sadly they weren’t able to maintain that momentum.
New York is on a roll lately: they’ve won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 20-10 record this season. As for Orlando, their defeat dropped their record down to 19-13.
This contest is shaping up to be a blowout: The Knicks have been crazy accurate this season, having made 49.7% of their field goals per game (they’re ranked second in field goal percentage overall). It’s a different story for the Magic, though, as they’ve only made 45.1% of theirs this season. Given the Knicks’ sizable advantage in that area, the Magic will need to find a way to close that gap.
Looking forward, the Knicks are the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by seven points. They might be worth a quick bet since they’re sitting on a three game streak of covering the spread when playing on the road.
Odds
New York is a solid 7-point favorite against Orlando, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Knicks as a 6.5-point favorite.
The oddsmakers are predicting a defensive showdown and set the over/under low at 212.5 points.
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
New York has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Orlando.
- Dec 15, 2024 – New York 100 vs. Orlando 91
- Dec 03, 2024 – New York 121 vs. Orlando 106
- Mar 08, 2024 – New York 98 vs. Orlando 74
- Feb 14, 2024 – Orlando 118 vs. New York 100
- Jan 15, 2024 – Orlando 98 vs. New York 94
- Dec 29, 2023 – Orlando 117 vs. New York 108
- Mar 23, 2023 – Orlando 111 vs. New York 106
- Feb 07, 2023 – New York 102 vs. Orlando 98
- Oct 24, 2022 – New York 115 vs. Orlando 102
- Apr 03, 2022 – New York 118 vs. Orlando 88
Read the full article here
