Big scoring performances by Banchero and Wagner not big enough for Magic against Celtics

By Canadian Press on April 27, 2025.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner are expected to combine for at least 55 points in every game played by the Orlando Magic — and they have rarely disappointed.

The problem in their first-round playoff series against Boston is that 55 or 60 points have not been enough.

The Celtics have shut down everyone else in winning three of the first four games and the Magic now face elimination in Game 5 on Tuesday night at Boston.

Banchero and Wagner have scored 61% of Orlando’s 379 playoff points and have shot 58% of the team’s free throws. Entering Sunday’s games, Banchero ranked as the NBA’s No. 3 playoff scorer (32.3 average) and Wagner was eighth (26.7).

“They’ve got two guys that can score at three levels,” Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said.

The 22-year-old Banchero scored 31 points Sunday night in the Magic’s 107-98 loss. It was his sixth 30-point performance in 11 playoff games, but his 12-for-32 shooting was framed as something of a failure. Too many jump shots hit the front of the rim.

“I just tried to be aggressive,” he said. “I think there was one stretch in the third quarter I shot like three in a row. I was probably forcing right there, but I really just took the shots they were giving me. They were trying to keep me from getting to the paint. They weren’t falling at a high clip, but I just had to stay aggressive.”

Wagner shot 10 for 22 and had 24 points.

“It wasn’t all bad today. It was 91-91 with four minutes to go and it could have gone a lot of different ways,” he said. “In the half-court, I think you need space and you need to share the ball. When you do those things and you have a purpose, that’s what the good teams do.”

The good teams tend to have more scoring options.

“They kind of baited us into what they wanted to do on offense, and then on defense they got what they wanted,” Banchero said. “Their experience showed.”

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Dick Scanlon, The Associated Press