ORLANDO, Florida (Ticker) -- Tracy McGrady has his cousin to thank for the Orlando Magic's latest loss.
Vince Carter hit a tough fadeaway jumper with 12.5 seconds remaining as the Toronto Raptors posted an 87-86 victory over the Magic, whose losing streak reached 15 games.
McGrady, who battled Carter nearly every time down on both ends of the floor, scored 18 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, helping Orlando overcome a double-digit deficit. He banked in a jumper over Carter with 27 seconds left, giving the Magic an 84-83 lead.
But on the ensuing possession, Carter dribbled to the left baseline and drilled a jumper over the outstretched arms of McGrady and Juwan Howard to put the Raptors ahead for good.
"It was great. I make a shot and he's looking at me," McGrady said. "I hit some shots and he hit some shots, but he hit the one that counted. Juwan and I were right there, but he's been doing that his whole career."
"I mean, we have done a great job executing end of game and part of that is we have a player that makes unbelievable shots," Raptors coach Kevin O'Neill said. "No matter what he's shooting at the time, he gets a good look at the basket and was able to do that."
Following a timeout, McGrady could not make his way around a double-team and passed to Tyronn Lue, who missed a jumper. Alvin Williams made two free throws with 2.3 seconds left to seal it for Toronto.
"I tried to beat it, there was no way around it," McGrady said. "I saw Ty in the corner, got him the ball and it was a great look. It just didn't fall for him."
The Magic's losing streak matches the second-longest in club history. They are two defeats from the longest, set from December 4-January 7, 1992.
Carter finished with 20 points and eight assists and rookie Chris Bosh had 16 points and eight rebounds as the Raptors won their third straight road game.
"This goes back to the days of practice in Toronto," Carter said of his matchup with McGrady. "We go 1-on-1 hard. That's what the battles usually look like. It's fun to be a part of and people appreciate it. He knows I'm coming at him and I know he's coming at me."
After a tightly contested first half, the Raptors closed the third quarter with a 17-5 run for a 68-58 lead. Williams' layup with 7:39 to go gave the Raptors their largest cushion, 76-62.
