ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane each scored 25 points, and the Orlando Magic blew a 17-point fourth-quarter lead before rallying to beat the Detroit Pistons 113-105 on Saturday for a 2-1 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Banchero had 12 rebounds and nine assists. Franz Wagner scored 17 points for Orlando, which got 15 from Jalen Suggs and a 14-point, 17-rebound game from Wendell Carter Jr.
Cade Cunningham scored 27 for Detroit, which trailed 96-79 with 8:34 left — then outscored the Magic 26-8 over the next six minutes to grab the lead. But the Pistons, who got 23 points from Tobias Harris, couldn’t hold on.
Game 4 is Monday night in Orlando.
“We’re looking forward to Monday, man,” Banchero said.
It’s the 13th time since 1984, when the NBA went to the 16-team format, that a No. 8 seed has taken a 2-1 lead in a first-round series over a No. 1 seed.
Of the previous 12, five finished off the upset. Those teams: Miami in 2023, Philadelphia in 2012, Memphis in 2011, Golden State in 2007 and New York in 1999. And that doesn’t include Denver’s upset of Seattle in 1994, the first 8-over-1 series win in NBA history.
The Magic — who had to win an elimination game at home just over a week ago to escape the play-in tournament — are trying to be the next name on that list.
“Our defense, our composure, our communication … so important,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said.
They seemed well on their way, until the Pistons roared back behind Cunningham and Harris. Cunningham made a free throw with 2:52 left to give Detroit its first lead of the second half, but the Magic outscored the Pistons 9-0 the rest of the way.
“One game at a time,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “That’s what playoff series are. If we win on Monday, we take home-court advantage back. Today’s game, we’ll learn from it, but it’s over with.”
As would be expected by this point in a playoff series between two physical teams, there was a good amount of extracurricular activities — with Detroit’s Isaiah Stewart involved in more than a few of them.
Orlando’s lead at halftime was 61-54, the last two of those points coming after Stewart fouled Carter with one-tenth of a second left.
That capped a half in which Stewart and Orlando’s Goga Bitadze were called for double fouls late in the first quarter, then called for double technicals while continuing to push and shove two seconds after play resumed. Stewart was also whistled for a Flagrant 1 against Suggs in the second quarter, and Defensive Player of the Year finalist Ausar Thompson was called for a flagrant in the third against Anthony Black.
“We have to trust ourselves and trust our team that we can guard without fouling,” Thompson said.
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