ORLANDO — Coach Jamahl Mosley said before Friday night’s game that the Brooklyn Nets are not their record. In the Orlando Magic’s 105-98 win, Brooklyn demonstrated his belief. 

Orlando had to claw its way through four quarters of hard-fought basketball. Without Paolo Banchero, the Magic fell behind by as many as 16 points halfway through the second quarter as the Nets rained down 3-pointers; Franz Wagner and Wendell Carter Jr. battled through discomfort which briefly pulled them from the game and the team registered 10 turnovers. 

The second half did not yield better results. Even when Brooklyn went cold from deep, Orlando continued to turn the ball over and came up empty on various possessions. With 2:37 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Magic trailed by four points. Then, they took control. 

The Nets did not score for the remainder of the game as Orlando administered an 11-0 run, nine of which came from three straight perimeter conversions from Franz Wagner and Tristan da Silva. 

“The fourth quarter is what did it,” Mosley said. “Plus 11 in that quarter. Down the backstretch, the defense that carried us, you know, obviously we did not take care of the basketball like we should have.” 

“And here's the thing. You've got to give Brooklyn a ton of credit for how they played and how they guarded. They disrupted, they switched, they grabbed, they held all those things. We have to continue to find ways not to let the offense and what teams are doing to us impact the way we defend throughout the night.” 

Mosley spoke at length about operating by committee and players starring in their roles without Banchero. In the latter’s absence, da Silva exemplified the point Mosley was repeating; scoring 22 points and going 5-9 from long range. 

“Not afraid of those big moments, not afraid to make plays,” Mosley said about his second year forward. “And that's what we'll continue to need from him. The swagger that he plays with, we're going to continue to need that from him.” 

Meanwhile, Wagner finished with 25 points and, despite struggling from the arc, hit consecutive threes to close the door on the Nets. 

“He steps up to the moment. That's what it is. I mean, those guys were making winning plays. Franz hits the big shots.” 

Even in victory, Mosley highlighted the Magic’s departure from the level of play they strive to maintain. 

“This was not Magic standard basketball,” he said. “19 turns for 21 points.” 

After his big night, da Silva echoed his coach. 

“Not our standard,” da Silva said. “You know, that's what we got to focus on. Still learn from this; still get better. Make sure that we understand we got the win, but we didn't play the way that we want to and just grow from this.” 

“Understand there's obviously games that are important that you kind of have to win ugly. But at the same time, make sure that we keep improving.” 

With a road game against Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets coming up on Sunday, Wagner wants the team to reignite the form they took in Wednesday’s 124-107 win over the New York Knicks. 

“I think it's good to get a win, but we kind of want to have another game like we had in New York, where we play our brand of basketball,” Wagner said. “Should be a really good challenge for our group.”