Orlando, FL – After an incredible win over the defending champions in the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday evening, Jamahl Mosley and his group faced the top team in the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics, and the Magic came out victorious 113-96.
A very poor and sloppy start to the game for the Magic allowed the Celtics to have a lot of clean looks and get to a nice lead after one. Bad passes from Joe Ingles and Cole Anthony hurt the flow of the offense as the Celtics were able to capitalize on the other end with buckets from both Jaylen Brown and Payton Prichard. Orlando found themselves with eight turnovers in the first period and they trailed early 30-19.
Orlando would bounce back in a big way in the second quarter, outshooting the Celtics in the period and playing with a lot more fluidity on the offensive side of the ball. Cole Anthony missed his first three shots of the game but got it going in the second quarter scoring 10 points and leading the second unit. Cole had a nice three over Tatum on the left wing as he began to heat up, and he followed that up with another three this time in the right corner off a nice hustle rebound after getting blocked by White.
Mo Wagner not only scored a game-high 27 points to lead both teams, but he was the most consistent player for the Magic in the first half. Mo did a phenomenal job of cutting to the basket and getting to the line, he had a big tip-in after a miss from Franz at the rim, and a big and-one layup over Kristaps Prozingizs to get the crowd ignited. Mo Wagner would finish the first half with 12 points and helped keep the Magic in the game as they trailed 56-48 going into the locker room.
Orlando’s backbone all season has been on the defensive side of the ball, and they clamped down in the second half limiting the Celtics to 40 points, and 96 for the game, their lowest output of the entire season.
Paolo Banchero (16) and Mo Wagner (15) helped lead the way in the second half to close out the Celtics on the offensive side of the ball. Jonathan Issac did a tremendous job guarding Jayson Tatum today limiting him to 26 points on 7-16 shooting and 3-12 from behind the arch. Jalen
Suggs did an incredible job on Jaylen Brown limiting him to 18 points on 6-21 shooting, and 2-8 from deep.Orlando in the fourth quarter sealed the deal with big hustle plays from Caleb Houstan who made an appearance, a tough Cole Anthony layup over Derrick White, and a Paolo Banchero elbow jumper to extend their lead to 104-92 with two minutes remaining.
Head Coach of the Orlando Magic Jamhal Mosley was asked about how the team is handling having recent success and he stated, “I love the way we’re just taking it one game at a time. You continue to do what we’ve been doing and that’s defending at a high clip, right? Sharing and moving the basketball. Playing the way we know how to play, a defensive team first and foremost, and then we get out and run.”
The Orlando Magic have now won six consecutive games and are currently 3-1 in terms of group play record with the in-season tournament in Group C. Orlando is currently the number two seed in the East just one game behind the Celtics for the one seed. The Magic will celebrate this victory and they will be playing host to the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday evening at the Amway Center.
