ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Lauri Markkanen scored 31 points, Talen Horton-Tucker added 23 and the Utah Jazz snapped a four-game losing streak with a 131-124 win over the Orlando Magic on Thursday night.
Simone Fontecchio scored 17 points for Utah, and rookie Walker Kessler’s 13 points and 10 rebounds included a crucial three-point play with 35 seconds left after the Magic had cut their deficit to one point.
Paolo Banchero scored 13 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter for the Magic, who lost their third straight. Markelle Fultz had 25 points and six assists and Franz Wagner added 24 points for Orlando.
Utah made its first six shots of the second half — two by Markkannen — to extend its lead to 15 points, its largest of the game.
Fultz responded with 13 points over the next seven minutes, leading a 29-10 outburst that gave the Magic a four point lead.
The Jazz led by a point early in the fourth quarter when Kris Dunn hit two straight shots and then came up with a steal that led to a 3-pointer by Fontecchio, giving Utah a 110-102 lead with 7:49 left.
Banchero, a 27.5% 3-point shooter, hit three from long distance in the final 6 1/2 minutes to keep the Magic in it, including a 3-pointer with 52 seconds remaining that made it 124-123.
TIP-INS
Jazz: G Jordan Clarkson missed a second straight game with a sprained finger. … G Collin Sexton missed a seventh game with hamstring injury.
Magic: Shot 16 for 34 (47.1%) from 3-point range and missed 11 free throws. … C Wendell Carter Jr. missed a third game with a sore left hip.
UP NEXT
Jazz: At Charlotte on Saturday night.
Magic: Host Miami Heat on Saturday night.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
