National Basketball Association
Washington 88, Orlando 87
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Where: Amway Center, Orlando, Florida
Officials: #42 Eric Lewis, #23 Jason Phillips, #21 Dedric Taylor
Attendance: 18846

ORLANDO, Fla. -- After five seasons in the NBA, All-Star guard John Wall knows when he has to be at his best. He proved it again on opening night.

Wall rallied the Washington Wizards to an 88-87 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday by scoring the winning basket with 12 seconds remaining to cap an impressive fourth-quarter flourish.

Wall had 12 points, three blocked shots and two steals in the final 12 minutes when he dominated both offensively and defensively as the Wizards beat the Magic for the ninth consecutive time.

"I've been in the league long enough to know when it's time to get the job done," he said. "It's my turn to make the pressure plays down the stretch. That's my job, and I'm ready for it."

Wall hit a driving 5-foot floater for the decisive score that almost was negated. On the ensuring possession, Wizards center Marcin Gortat initially was called for goaltending on a shot by Tobias Harris with 3.5 seconds remaining, giving the Magic the lead. But officials reversed the call after a video review and gave the Magic possession again.

Center Nikola Vucevic missed a 15-foot jumper just as time expired.

Wall finished with 22 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots. Guard Bradley Beal had a game-high 24 points and six rebounds. Gortat contributed 10 points and eight rebounds, and forward Chris Humphries had 11 points and six rebounds

The Wizards overcame 18 turnovers, poor shooting from the field (39.3 percent) and and a five-point deficit with two minutes remaining.

"It's hard to win in this league, so you take it any way you can," Wizards coach Randy Wittman said. "Every win is a good win. John has this ability to read and anticipate, and knows the situation. He knows when he has to take over."

The Magic were led by guard Victor Oladipo, who had 17 points and 11 rebounds. Point guard Elfrid Payton had 11 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Harris added 15 points.

Orlando scored nine consecutive points for the 87-82 lead with 1:59 remaining, but the Magic never scored again.

"That's a good team. They made the plays they had to make and we didn't," Magic coach Scott Skiles said. "The guards (Wall and Beal) hurt us, but they are going to hurt a lot of people."

The Wizards produced 12 consecutive points midway in the fourth quarter, turning a 78-70 deficit into an 82-78 lead. Oladipo scored early in the fourth for the Magic's eight-point lead, their biggest of the game.

The Magic led 67-65 going into the fourth quarter. The Wizards, who scored 31 points in the first quarter, managed just 12 points in the third when they committed six turnovers and made only 4 of 17 shots from the field.

NOTES: The Wizards began the night with an eight-game winning streak against the Magic. "They just punked us, plain and simple," Orlando G Victor Oladipo said. ... Magic PG Elfrid Payton, the only player on the roster to see action in all 82 games last season, started Wednesday after missing the final five exhibition games with a hamstring strain. ... The Magic had all 14 players on their roster healthy. The Wizards were without F Martell Webster (hip) and G Alan Anderson (ankle). ... Wizards C Marcin Gortat was his usual confident self on the eve of the opener. "Being the only big man in the middle, everything is going to start and end with me," he told a D.C. area radio station. ... Expecting to play at a faster pace this season, the Wizards spent more time on conditioning in preseason. PG John Wall said he was in the best condition of his career to start a season.
Top Game Performances
 
Washington   Orlando
Bradley Beal 24 Scoring Victor Oladipo 17
John Wall 6 Assists Elfrid Payton 8
Marcin Gortat 8 Rebounds Victor Oladipo 11
Bradley Beal 4 Free Throws Made Aaron Gordon 4
John Wall 3 Steals Evan Fournier 2
John Wall 5 Blocks Dewayne Dedmon 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Washington 88 39.3 7-28 15-25 17 49 9 8 18
Orlando 87 37.0 5-26 8-12 20 56 6 9 16
Upcoming Games
  • Orlando will play their next game at home against Oklahoma City. The Magic have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Washington will play their next game on the road against Milwaukee. The Wizards have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.