Halftime Report
Down one at the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets now have the lead. A victory is still up for grabs for either team after two quarters, but the Nuggets are up 54-52 over the Magic. The finale is shaping up to be a lot like these teams’ last head-to-head, which was decided by just two points.
The Nuggets came into the contest with some extra motivation after the loss 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
Denver Nuggets @ Orlando Magic
Current Records: Denver 25-16, Orlando 23-20
How To Watch
- When: Sunday, January 19, 2025 at 6 p.m. ET
- Where: Kia Center — Orlando, Florida
- TV: Altitude Sports & Entertainmnt
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $45.00
What to Know
The Denver Nuggets are taking a road trip to face off against the Orlando Magic at 6:00 p.m. ET on Sunday at Kia Center. The Nuggets are looking to tack on another W to their five-game streak on the road.
Last Friday, the Nuggets got the win against the Heat by a conclusive 133-113.
Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic were among the main playmakers for the Nuggets as the former earned 30 points along with eight assists and seven rebounds and the latter dropped a triple-double on 24 points, 12 rebounds, and ten assists. What’s more, Jokic also posted a 75% field goal percentage, which is the highest he’s posted since back in November of 2024.
The Nuggets were working as a unit and finished the game with 35 assists (they’re ranked first in assists per game overall). They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as the Heat only posted 30.
Meanwhile, the Magic were no doubt aware that the odds were against they in their game with the Celtics but that awareness did nothing to prevent the predicted outcome. The Magic suffered a bruising 121-94 loss at the hands of the Celtics on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that’s the biggest defeat Orlando has suffered against Boston since February 6, 2022.
Denver has been performing well recently as they’ve won five of their last six contests, which provided a nice bump to their 25-16 record this season. As for Orlando, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 23-20.
Keep an eye on the arc in Sunday’s matchup: The Nuggets have been dynamite from deep this season, having made 38.5% of their threes per game. It’s a different story for the Magic, though, as they’ve only made 30.4% of their threes this season. Given the Nuggets’ sizable advantage in that area, the Magic will need to find a way to close that gap.
Going forward, the Nuggets are the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 7.5 points. Anyone thinking of taking them against the spread should keep this in mind: the team hasn’t covered the last seven times they’ve played Orlando.
Odds
Denver is a big 7.5-point favorite against Orlando, according to the latest NBA odds.
The line on this game has moved quite a bit since it opened, as it started out with the Nuggets as a 3-point favorite.
The over/under is 221.5 points.
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Series History
Denver has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Orlando.
- Jan 05, 2024 – Orlando 122 vs. Denver 120
- Nov 22, 2023 – Orlando 124 vs. Denver 119
- Feb 09, 2023 – Orlando 115 vs. Denver 104
- Jan 15, 2023 – Denver 119 vs. Orlando 116
- Feb 14, 2022 – Denver 121 vs. Orlando 111
- Dec 01, 2021 – Orlando 108 vs. Denver 103
- Apr 04, 2021 – Denver 119 vs. Orlando 109
- Mar 23, 2021 – Denver 110 vs. Orlando 99
- Dec 18, 2019 – Denver 113 vs. Orlando 104
- Nov 02, 2019 – Denver 91 vs. Orlando 87
