The Toronto Raptors, desperate for a win, will have to keep waiting, ever more desperate. The Orlando Magic won their second of three starts against their National Basketball Association Eastern Conference rivals, 90-85, and extended the Raptors' losing string to nine games Wednesday night.

Trailing by a point with 42.3 seconds left and the ball, Toronto failed to convert on three good chances on the possession. The Magic's Darrell Armstrong made two foul shots with 15 seconds left to put the Magic up 88-85.

The best the Raptors could do was a desperation three-point attempt by Morris Peterson, who was pointless in the game, that drew only air.

The Raptors had a six-point lead with less than five minutes to play, but were held pointless the rest of the way.

Horace Grant made an uncontested lay-up to give the Magic an 86-85 lead with just more than two minutes left.

This long road trip ? longest in franchise history ? suddenly doesn't look so long or tough anymore.

It could become a joy ride.

The Orlando Magic, who hung around like a hound dog looking for a handout, came from behind to sting the Toronto Raptors 90-85 Wednesday night, moving into a tie with the Boston Celtics for the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

The Magic improved to 31-26, while the Raptors (29-30) absorbed their ninth consecutive loss. After being pummeled ? almost embarrassed ? around the basket throughout the game, the Magic rose up and defended like giants down the stretch, holding the Raptors scoreless for the final five minutes.

What was a hotly debated topic early in the season has turned into an afterthought as Keon Clark continues to prove his worth as a starter for the Toronto Raptors.

?I think he's been playing wonderful,? veteran centre Hakeem Olajuwon said of Clark after Wednesday's 90-85 loss to the Orlando Magic.

Although Olajuwon says he's feeling strong and his health is back after missing 11 consecutive games with a thigh injury, he's been watching from the bench as Clark continues in a starting role.

Clark finished with 20 points and nine rebounds in 37 minutes. Olajuwon played 15 minutes, scoring two points.

As the Raptors are seemingly playing themselves out of the playoffs, having lost nine in a row, Clark has been one of few bright spots.

Vince Carter was shaking his head, looking at the box score like it was written in a foreign language. Two chairs down was Antonio Davis, facing the wall, his head in his hands.

This is what the Raptors' locker room looks like when they lose their ninth game in a row, 90-85 to the Orlando Magic, a fourth-quarter "mental breakdown" that left a sold-out crowd of 19,800 booing.

"We've just put ourselves in a negative situation ? not just that we're losing games, but the way that we're playing," Davis said. "Everything just seems to be so blown out of proportion because we've lost so many games.

With the stage set for drama, the Toronto Raptors played out a farce.

In what might go down as the worst end-of-game possession since Oliver Miller hoisted a 35-footer in the dying seconds of a SkyDome game in the horror that was Year 1, the Raptors botched a possible game-tying situation last night in a manner that defies all credulity.

Trailing the Orlando Magic by three with the ball and 15 seconds left, the Raptors could get nothing more than a desperation three-point airball from Morris Peterson on their way to loss No. 9 in succession.

Another deadline looms in the NBA and the Raptors aren't expected to be very active.

Not that the Raptors have much flexibility, but tomorrow is the deadline for players acquired off waivers to be eligible for the playoffs.

Former Raptors forward Charles Oakley has made noises in Chicago that he wants the Bulls to waive him. If the Bulls waive Oakley after tomorrow's deadline, the veteran won't be eligible to play in the playoffs.

The Raptors stood pat when the trade deadline came and went last Thursday. Tomorrow's deadline historically has passed without any major developments around the league.

The Raptors are running a special Bring Back The Past promotion.

The Raptors have now lost nine consecutive games and from Feb. 12 through to last night, and maybe forever, you pay full price but you get a team that reminded you of the darkest days of the franchise. It has been kind of like time-travelling, except no matter what button you press, the machine takes you back to the part of the Spanish Inquisition that got a little out of hand.

The Raps have not won since Feb. 7, when they beat the San Antonio Spurs 80-74 in overtime. That would be 2002, in case you were wondering.

The misery, mental lapses and boneheaded mistakes continue for these free-falling Raptors.

On a night when they couldn't produce any points in crunch time and when they couldn't defend the most basic of plays as an inbounds pass underneath their basket, the Raptors dropped their ninth in a row, losing 90-85 to the visiting Orlando Magic.

Not since Tracy McGrady was a rookie in 1998 have the Raptors lost this many in succession.

McGrady brought his Magic to town and showed his overall game in helping Orlando escape the Air Canada Centre with a win, which improved its record to 31-26.

With the loss, the Raptors dropped to 29-30.