The Orlando Magic had their chances Sunday afternoon, but the Boston Celtics finished stronger and walked out of the Kia Center with a 108-97 win.
Orlando was shorthanded, missing two starters, yet still managed to hang around deep into the fourth quarter. With a little under four minutes left, the Magic were down by only four. Boston then answered with an 11-4 burst to put the game away and send Orlando to its fourth loss of the season.
There were still some bright spots for the Magic, starting with Tristan da Silva. He stayed hot and gave Orlando a lift off the bench, finishing with a team-high 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting and going 5-of-8 from 3-point range. With Paolo Banchero and Jalen Suggs sidelined for the foreseeable future, that kind of production from the second unit matters a lot.
Anthony Black also gave Orlando useful offense, though most of his damage came at the line. He kept pressure on Boston by drawing fouls and finished 10 of 11 from the free-throw line.
The Magic also came out firing from deep, knocking down shots from beyond the arc early and grabbing the lead in the first quarter. They couldn’t hold it, but it was still a positive sign for a team that has struggled from long range over the last couple of years.
Franz Wagner, meanwhile, had a tough shooting night. He scored 14 points but needed 20 shots to get there, finishing 5 of 20 from the field.
Even so, he added 12 assists, and Orlando could have done more damage if a few more of his looks had fallen. With Banchero out for a few more weeks, Wagner has to shoulder more of that load.
The biggest problem for Orlando was turnovers. The Magic coughed it up 18 times, and Boston turned those mistakes into 21 points. In a game decided by 11, that was the difference.
Boston also made life difficult on the glass. The Celtics grabbed 14 offensive rebounds and turned them into 15 second-chance points, a key part of how they finished off the win.
The Magic are back in action tomorrow night at home against the Washington Wizards. Tip-off is set for 7:30 pm ET at the Kia Center, with the game available on WFTV Channel 9, NBA League Pass or DAZN.
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