Lakeland Magic starts off new year victorious
The local G League affiliate started off 2023 majestic.
The Lakeland Magic won convincingly over the College Park Skyhawks 131-116 Saturday at the Gateway Center Arena.
Three players for the Magic finished with double-doubles: guard Zavier Simpson had 25 points, 16 assists and seven rebounds; center Simi Shittu notched 21 points and 15 rebounds; forward Robert Baker II registered a career-high 25 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks off the bench; and forward Aleem Ford produced a game-high 30 points.
“We only had seven players available tonight, I had the chance to make the most of my minutes. Coach told us to make positive plays and stay connected on the floor,” Baker said.
From start to finish the Magic played well thanks to a 9-2 run to take a 10-point lead at the 8:24 mark in the first quarter. It was Simpson who helped the Magic catch fire with his 12 first-quarter points and four assists, while College Park’s Langston Galloway put up 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting., contributing to a first-quarter score of 42-25.
Ford’s nine points led to the Magic building upon the lead in the second quarter. He shot 3-of-3 beyond the arc, which led to a 67-54 halftime lead.
But the Skyhawks dominated the third quarter despite not seeing a lead by the quarter’s end. Tyrese Martin of the Skyhawks scored 12 points in the quarter on 5-of-6 shooting. A 13-point lead for the Magic went to just three with a 91-88 end-of-third-quarter score.
Still, Lakeland steamrolled the fourth quarter. And College Park had no answer.
Martin put up a team-high 22 points.
The Magic will play the Windy City Bulls Friday at the Now Arena.
Lakeland Magic sign Tookie Brown
Guard Tookie Brown was acquired from an available player pool by the Lakeland Magic on Monday.
Brown (5’11”, 180) competed for four collegiate seasons (2015-19) at Georgia Southern, playing in 129 games (121 starts), and averaged 17.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and four assists in 33.2 minutes a game. Brown didn’t play in the College Park game.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Magic win first game of year, Simpson lights it up
