WASHINGTON -- The Magic never could slow down Wizards guard John Wall on Tuesday. That Washington rarely kept Orlando's nine-man rotation in check became the bigger issue.

Elfrid Payton scored 22 of his career-high 25 points in the first half as the surging Magic defeated the Wizards 124-116 despite a career-high 52 points from Wall.

Payton made his first nine shot attempts, and he finished 3 of 3 on 3-point tries for the Magic, who posted their highest point total of the season. Orlando (10-12) went 4-1 on its road trip after losing four in a row.

"We're growing on that end of the floor," Magic coach Frank Vogel said of Orlando's offense. "We didn't play well early in the season, but some of the guys are finding their spots, and I'm finding ways to use them. We got several great contributions, starting with Elfrid Payton. (He) came off the bench, having the game of his life. He was terrific tonight.

Wall became the fourth NBA player to score 50 or more points in a single game this season. He made 18 of 31 shots, including 5 of 8 3-point attempts, and he added eight assists. The three-time All-Star scored 33 points in the second half, 18 in the fourth quarter, but he received little help from his teammates through three quarters.

Bradley Beal wound up with 19 points for Washington (7-13).

The Wizards lost for the third time in four games. The lone win in that span came Monday in Brooklyn, when Washington trailed 65-51 at halftime before rallying for the 118-113 win over a Nets team that fell to 5-15.

Washington finished 11 of 23 on 3-point attempts Tuesday, but Orlando shot 51.8 percent overall, 12 of 26 from beyond the arc and led by as many as 20 points.

"Not even just defensive effort, just playing hard," Wall said. "Our job is to wake up and just play hard. Before you made it to the NBA or got a college scholarship, you played hard to get where you wanted to get to. To still be talking about playing hard ... That's the easiest thing. Shouldn't have to do with any contracts or any money. Just come in and play basketball."

Asked why that isn't happening, Wall said, "I don't know. If I had the answers, we wouldn't be in this situation right now."

The Magic finished with a 26-17 scoring advantage from the free-throw line as they took a 2-1 lead in the season series.

Jeff Green scored 20 points, Jodie Meeks 18 and Nikola Vucevic 10 off the Magic bench. Led by Payton, Orlando's bench outscored Washington's 73-22.

Payton made all eight of his field-goal attempts including three 3-pointers in the first half. He entered shooting 17.8 percent (8 of 45) from beyond the arc and with a career high of 24 points.

"They were playing off a little bit, so they gave me a couple of open looks," Payton said. "I was able to knock it down. They just looked like they were staying home, so (I was) just trying to be a little bit more aggressive."

Orlando entered averaging an Eastern Conference-low 93.2 points. Facing a Washington defense ranked 28th guarding the 3-point arc, the Magic sank 7 of 12 in the first half.

The Wizards pulled within 115-107 with 3:43 remaining, but Green's 3-pointer capped a 5-0 spurt for Orlando and effectively ended any comeback hopes.

Orlando led 65-52 at halftime after outscoring Washington 40-28 in the second quarter.

"Unacceptable," Wizards coach Scott Brooks said of his team's second-quarter defense.

Bismack Biyombo, who scored 14 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, had a driving dunk to give the Magic their largest lead at 78-58.

"We have to be able to sustain a sense of urgency possession by possession," Brooks said. "It was spotty at best. Until we do that, we're going to put ourselves in a bad position."

NOTES: Wizards C Ian Mahinmi missed his fifth consecutive game since making his season debut on Nov. 26. The free agent signee is dealing with a sore right knee after having surgery on his left knee in mid-October. Wizards coach Scott Brooks said Mahinmi recently had an MRI and that "everything was fine." ... Wizards assigned G Sheldon McClellan to the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Developmental League, where is expected to play three to four games, per Brooks. The rookie is averaging 4.6 points in seven games with two starts. ... Orlando returns home to face the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. Washington hosts the Denver Nuggets on Thursday.