Orlando, FL— A young Magic team that has been battle-tested all season long and had their backs against the wall in an elimination game at home, came through with a thrilling 103-96 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“It’s a great learning experience for these guys to know game in and game out.” Jamahl Mosley pregame on how the Magic have dealt with playing the same opponent multiple times. “You’re making adjustments as the game goes on. You’re recognizing, you’re reading tendencies. But just being able to see that and adjust real time, knowing that it’s the small minor possessions that matter.”

This Orlando team has faced a lot of adversity throughout the entirety of this season and this playoff series. This Magic squad has continued to stay the course, trust in one another, and have that belief in that next-man-up mentality that has got them to where they are today, now forcing a game seven in Cleveland.

Cavaliers Center Jarret Allen (right rib contusion) missed his second consecutive game tonight and that inserted Marcus Morris Sr into the starting lineup. For the Magic, Gary Harris (right hamstring strain) was listed as a game-time decision before tip-off and was ultimately ruled out as that gave Jonathan Issac his first start in this series since game two in Cleveland.

Third-year Forward Franz Wagner played a hell of a game this evening and he came out the gates with his hair on fire scoring 14 points in that first quarter alone. There was a sense of urgency and aggressive demeanor that Franz played with all night long that set the tone for this group and the energy in the building.

Cleveland did a phenomenal job all evening especially in that first half being aggressive, getting downhill, and getting inside the paint with 40 of their 66 points in the paint coming in the first half. Orlando shot the ball relatively well in that first half as they were 19-47 (40.4%) from the field, 7-19 (36.8%), and 8-9 (88.9%) from the charity stripe as they led the Cavs 53-49 going into the halftime locker room.

The Cavaliers would open up the third quarter on a 17-4 run led by both Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland who continued to get downhill and the Cavs led the Magic 66-57 with 6:01 remaining in the third period. Orlando would not allow the game to slip away from them as they went on a quick 8-0 run fueled by an acrobatic Markelle Fultz reverse layup, a Paolo Banchero three, and a Jalen Suggs three on the left wing that ignited the crowd and swung all the momentum in the direction of the Magic.

Jamahl Mosley was asked in the postgame about what the message was to his group after Cleveland had opened the second half on a 17-4 run and he stated,

“Stay the course. This is a long game, and we have to understand it’s a game of runs and the runs have gone against us. But to be able to stay the course and you look up and you get it down and it’s a seven-point game, to be able to stay the course, make the right plays, get stops to get out and run.”

After Orlando responded with a run of their own and had seized the momentum back in their favor the Magic would close out the third quarter on a 13-7 run and they would trail the Cavs 78-73 heading into the final period of play.

Donovan Mitchell, who has been one of the best playoff risers since coming into the league back in 2017, put together arguably the best postseason performance of his career tonight. Donovan Mitchell recorded a game-high 50 points on 22-36 (61.1%) shooting from the floor, 3-9 from behind the arch (33.3%) and he put the team on his shoulders in that fourth quarter scoring all 18 of the Cavs points.

“I wanna preface this by wanting to give credit to Orlando. This is not an excuse.” Donovan Mitchell on the Cavs scoring 66 points in the paint but only having 10 free throw attempts. “We get to the paint, and 10 free throws to me is crazy. I think, you know, at the end of the day, for a guy who drives like that, I’m not saying that’s the only reason why we lost. I had four turnovers, and one at the end of the game—Credit to Orlando, they beat us.”

That final period of play embodied what NBA Playoff basketball is all about, especially in a potential elimination game for the Magic. In a game that went down to the wire, the stars on both teams showed up, and overall it was a thrilling end to an incredible game.

The ballgame was tied at 86 a piece after Franz Wagner knocked down two free throws with 4:52 left in the contest. Orlando went on a quick scoring burst to extend their lead with a Jalen Suggs three, a Paolo Banchero three-point pull-up jumper, and a driving and one layup by Banchero to put the Magic up 94-89. A Cole Anthony tip in layup and clutch free throws by both Suggs and Banchero was the icing on the cake for this Magic team to keep their season alive.

The Magic in the most important game of their season came out on top as this team hit timely shots, played great defense, and there was a sense of poise that surrounded this group. Orlando outscored Cleveland 30-18 in the final period of play forcing the Cavs into seven turnovers that ultimately was the difference in the outcome of the game.

“I loved it. I think all series long we’ve done a great job of staying so poised.” Jalen Suggs on how he liked their ability to handle the moment. “We’ve responded to every run they’ve made, every game they’ve won, every punch they’ve thrown, and anything they’ve done to try to throw us off our game, knock us off balance—But it was just another game for all of us. Just another opportunity to play basketball together, continue to have fun, smile and hoop in this city and we took full advantage tonight.”

The young stars for the Magic made playoff history tonight as they joined a list of trios under 23 years old to score 20+ points in NBA Playoff history. That list included the names of James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Kevin Durant. Now Paolo Banchero, Jalen Suggs, and Franz Wagner are among that list of names of guys who will all be future first-ballot Hall of Famers.

Paolo Banchero led all Magic scorers tonight with 27 points while shooting 9-20 (45%) from the floor he chipped in eight rebounds as well. Franz Wagner scored 26 points on 7-16 (43.7%) from the field and did a great job of getting downhill as he was a perfect 11-11 (100%) from the charity stripe. Jalen Suggs was nothing short of sensational as he put together a 22-point performance while shooting 7-16 (43.7%) from the floor and he connected on 6-13 (46.1%) shots from deep.

“That’s super cool. That’s what you work for, not just as an NBA player but as a little kid.” Franz Wagner on the opportunity to play a game seven in the NBA Playoffs. “Those are the games you grow up watching, but I just want to win the game. That’s what my main focus is… so [we] only have one day to recover and then back to it.”

The Orlando Magic will play the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse on Sunday afternoon for the deciding game seven of this first-round series.