After two days off, the Orlando Magic return to action Wednesday when they take on the Portland Trail Blazers, continuing their road trip with a visit to the Rose City. Tipoff is set for 10 Eastern on Sun Sports in the Orlando market.
At 7-2, Portland owns the second-best record in the Western Conference. Power forward LaMarcus Aldridge anchors the team with 22.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.1 steals, while swingman Wesley Matthews has admirably filled the shoes Brandon Roy vacated when he retired, scoring an efficient 15.9 points per game.
The Blazers are coming off a 105-97 win against the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night. Seven Blazers scored in double-figures, with Gerald Wallace's 20 points leading the way. Point guard Raymond Felton scored 17 with eight assists in the win. Portland held the Clippers to 26.1 percent three-point shooting, continuing its stretch of dominance defending the arc: Portland ranks No. 1 in the NBA in three-point defense, yielding just 23.7 percent shooting from deep.
Orlando is also coming off a victory of its own as it topped the Sacramento Kings, 104-97, in the first part of its road trip. The Magic got 20 points off the bench from Glen Davis, and his production proved invaluable, as foul trouble limited Magic superstar Dwight Howard to just 20 minutes.
The Blazers have won each of their last three games against the Magic, and Orlando has not scored more than 87 points in any of them. Howard missed the most recent meeting due to a suspension.
For more on the Magic, please visit Orlando Pinstriped Post, SB Nation's Magic blog. For the perspective from the other side, please visit Blazer's Edge, SB Nation's Trail Blazers blog.