ORLANDO - What’s made this Orlando Magic team so good all year is their willingness to do things by committee. Never is it just one guy, or even two guys dictating the outcome.
Sure, some nights the scoring has been carried by the team’s dynamic duo of Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner. But even in those games, others stepped up in other ways – like making a huge defensive stop, pulling down a critical rebound, or dishing out a key assist.
That collective approach was on full display down the stretch of Friday’s 103-96 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers at Kia Center that evened up their best-of-seven first-round playoff series.
With the score knotted up at 86 with under five minutes to play, we saw each and every Magic player that was on the floor deliver in one way or another. Jalen Suggs started it off with one of his six 3-pointers after the ball ricocheted his way following a missed shot. Banchero, following a Donovan Mitchell triple, nailed a three of his own to give the Magic the lead back. The 6-foot-10, 250-pound Magic forward would go on to subsequently score another six of his team-high 27 points.
Also in that time, Wendell Carter Jr. had a huge block on Mitchell, Cole Anthony converted on a putback layup off a missed 3-pointer, and Jonathan Isaac, shortly after subbing in for Anthony, grabbed an offensive rebound with 33 seconds left that essentially sealed the win.
“I loved it. I loved our energy. I loved our poise,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “We handled the runs. Our ability to stay the course, to stick with the gameplan, and not be discouraged – for a group that continues to gain experience, this is up there with it. To be able to force a Game 7 in this situation.”
What Orlando also did was overcome a Herculean performance from Mitchell, who exploded for 50 points on 22-of-36 floor shooting. It was only the 12th time in NBA history that a player scored 50-plus in a playoff loss. It was the second time for Mitchell, who scored 57 while playing for Utah in an overtime defeat to Denver in Game 1 of their first-round postseason series in the Disney bubble.
As they’ve done all series, the Magic did an excellent job defending perimeter shots. The Cavs made only seven of their 28 3-point attempts (25 percent).
Banchero, who has scored at least 20 in five of the six games this series, including erupting for over 30 twice, was one of four Magic players who scored in double figures in Friday’s victory. The others were Franz (26 points), Suggs (22 points) and Carter (11 points).
“All series long, we’ve done a great job of staying so poised,” Suggs said. “Anything they’ve done to try to throw us off our game and knock us off balance, we’ve responded to it, we’ve acknowledged it and we’ve faced it. We’ve stayed center and together. I think tonight was another example of that.”
With Gary Harris sidelined due to a right hamstring strain, Isaac got the start. Although he didn’t score, he compiled nine rebounds and a block.
For the second straight game, Cleveland was without Jarrett Allen (right rib contusion).
Darius Garland finished with 21 points for the Cavs, who led by nine in the third quarter. Max Strus had 10 points.
Each team now with three wins in the series, a decisive Game 7 will take place in Cleveland on Sunday at 1 p.m. on ABC. The home team has won all six games. The Magic hope to change that narrative in Game 7.