The Orlando Magic are in the final stretch of the regular season competing for home-court advantage in the initial round of the playoffs, while playing against the struggling Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.

Orlando (43-31) ended a three-game losing streak on Saturday with a decisive 118-88 victory over Memphis. This commanding win followed three narrow losses, including a 100-97 defeat against the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday.

“(Moritz Wagner) talked about it the other day in his interview: the standard and the way in which we play,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said following Saturday’s win. “Just because it doesn’t come out in the winning end doesn’t mean you’re not playing good basketball. So you stick with that process.”

For Orlando, the foundation of their success in the playoff push has been their robust defense.

The Magic stand third in the NBA in points allowed per game, with a stingy average of 108.3, and their 88 points surrendered on Saturday marked their lowest since limiting Brooklyn to 81 points back on Feb. 27.

Orlando boasts a remarkable 19-2 record when holding opponents to 99 points or fewer this season, with one of those victories coming in their previous clash with Portland, a 102-97 win on Oct. 27.

Recently, the Blazers have struggled to surpass the 100-point mark in four of their losses during a stretch where they dropped 10 out of 11 contests, including a nine-game losing streak. Portland’s latest defeat in this slump was a humiliating 142-82 drubbing by Miami on Friday.

The Blazers (19-55) were missing several key players during the third-worst defeat in franchise history. Anfernee Simons, their leading scorer for the season with 22.6 points per game, sat out his fourth consecutive game due to a knee injury.

Jerami Grant, averaging 21 points per game, has been sidelined since March 11 due to a hamstring issue. Malcolm Brogdon, Shaedon Sharpe, and Toumani Camara were also notable absences for Portland’s loss on Friday.

Rookie Scoot Henderson provided a ray of hope, scoring in double digits for the ninth straight game with 20 points — three of those games saw him tally 20 or more points in the last five outings. He also distributed at least six assists in six of his last 11 games.

Deandre Ayton made a return to the lineup after missing four games, scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Ayton had previously racked up five double-doubles in seven games, with at least 22 points and 14 rebounds in each game before his brief absence.

“We was happy to have him. DA was his normal, efficient self,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “He’s very efficient, he’s good on the glass, too. Pretty sure he felt good just getting back out there.”

Orlando enters Monday’s game against what could be a significantly weakened Blazers roster, having utilized various players for substantial minutes on Saturday.

Among the Orlando players who contributed 15 points each against Memphis, Wendell Carter Jr.‘s performance, coupled with his 13 rebounds, marked his first double-double since March 10. Jalen Suggs, also with 15 points, has scored in double figures in seven of his last nine games.

Guard Cole Anthony added 15 points off the bench.