ORLANDO, Fla. -- On a night when Victor Oladipo was their only starter to get into any kind of flow on offense, the Orlando Magic needed to find a spark from their bench.
For the second game in a row, they got just that. But as was the case Friday night at Atlanta, it wasn't enough to prevent a loss.
The Magic got 11 points from both Willie Green and Andrew Nicholson, nine rebounds from Dewayne Dedmon and perhaps as good of a game from Maurice Harkless as they have all season Sunday. Despite that, the Charlotte Hornets came away with a 98-83 victory and became the fifth opponent in the past seven games to hold the Magic under 90 points in regulation.
"I was proud of that group," coach James Borrego said of his reserves, who outscored Charlotte's non-starters 31-16. "They inspired us again. They got us back in that game. At both ends of the floor, they had some nice rhythm going. They were moving the ball, sharing the ball. Defensively, they were active."
Harkless, who had not played in four straight games until Borrego brought him in during the first half against the Hawks, matched his season high in rebounds with five and blocked a shot in 16 minutes. He also came up with what looked like a clean block against Bismack Biyombo early in the fourth quarter, but he was instead called for a foul.
"If I make plays defensively, offensively, whatever, I'm just going out there and bring the juice, trying to make plays," Harkless said.
Nicholson, the Magic's first-round pick three years ago, matched his season-high scoring output and finished in double figures for only the third time all season. At one point in the second quarter, the Magic were 3 of 18 from the floor, with all three of their field goals coming from him.
"It's a credit to those guys," Green said. "The things that people don't see are that they're in here every day working, even though they're not getting the minutes right now that maybe they want. They're getting extra shots, they're conditioning, they're lifting. And when their number's called, I'm proud to see those guys step in and play well for us. We need that."
It was Nicholson who gave the Magic their first lead of the game with a basket five minutes into the second quarter. And it was a lineup of Nicholson, Harkless, Dedmon, Green and Ben Gordon which was responsible for an 8-1 run to start the fourth quarter after the Magic trailed by as many as 15 in the third quarter.
"They've just got to keep doing what they're doing," said Oladipo, whose 21 points wound up being in vain. "We've got to do a better job of bringing the same energy they bring. The guys coming off the bench are doing phenomenal. Our starters, we have to match that intensity."
"We fought back," Harkless said. "We showed some fight. That's always good."
Borrego brought in Green to replace Elfrid Payton with 8:10 to go in the third quarter, and the 33-year-old veteran remained in the game for the duration while the rookie watched from the bench. Payton was shut out for only the second time in 61 games as teams continue to back off and dare him to shoot jump shots.
"We're going to lean on him," Green said. "We're putting a lot of responsibility on him. We know that. We're still confident in him. No one's going away from him."
Added Borrego: "He's facing the best player, the best point guard every single night. We're asking him to guard. We're asking him to set the table for our offense. There's a lot on his shoulders right now. We need him to step up. We need him to be aggressive. We need him to be confident."
While Payton's self-confidence appears to be on the wane, Green's is as high as it has been in years. He has played at least 20 minutes in five consecutive games.
"I love to play," he said. "So give me more games, give me more minutes, whatever it is, and I'll be ready to go."
You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.
