Orlando Magic secure second straight Playoff Appearance following win against Atlanta Hawks

Cole Anthony scored 26 points off the bench as the Magic rolled past the Atlanta Hawks 120-95 in Play-In Tournament at Kia Center in Orlando.

The Orlando Magic and the Atlanta Hawks faced off against each other in a playoff game at Orlando's Kia Center on Tuesday, April 16. with an excited crowd cheering on the Magic to a 120-95 win, securing the teams spot in the playoffs for the second year in a row, with a match up with the defending-champion Boston Celtics in the first round. 

“I thought we did a good job of keeping everyone under control, calm,” Paolo Banchero said. “There were some moments where one or two guys would get frustrated at the ref or maybe frustrated with each other real quick, and guys were able to tell each other to relax, regroup and shake it off quickly. That’s just what a good team does. That’s what a tight locker room does. And we were able to do that.”

Just as they had been doing over the last few weeks of the regular season, Orlando’s supporting cast stepped up in every which way possible. Not only did everyone give the effort that was necessary on defense and on the boards, but contributions came from a variety of players on offense. 

Cole Anthony exploded for 26 points on 10-of-17 overall shooting and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc, Wendell Carter Jr. recorded 19 points and Anthony Black finished with 16 points.

“It meant a lot,” Cole said of his performance. “It was a big game. I was happy to make the rotation. This was just an awesome game to be a part of. I was just happy to be out there and do something to feel like I was contributing to the team. Great win. But this was a full team effort. ‘Dell, AB, P, Franz, J.I. – everyone who stepped on the court contributed, so it’s a great team effort.”

With the Hawks loading up on him, Banchero didn’t get many open looks. But he did fill up the stat sheet with 17 points, including nine from the free throw line, nine rebounds and seven assists. He converted on an AND-1 with 7:54 remaining that caused the crowd to erupt and forced Atlanta to call a timeout. Franz Wagner, who also didn’t have a strong shooting night, tallied a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds. 

As is typically the case for this team, the Magic won mainly because of their defense. Nothing came easy for the Hawks, who shot just 38.1 percent from the field overall and 19 percent from 3-point range. 

While the Magic controlled the momentum for most of the night, the Hawks did have a strong third quarter, which got them within three at one point after trailing by as much as 22 in the first half. Orlando, however, responded with a dominant fourth, led by the supporting cast. 

Cole and Black combined to make four straight shots during a stretch midway through the fourth that essentially sealed Orlando’s place in the playoffs. 

Trae Young led the Hawks with 28 points before getting ejected with 4:47 remaining after picking up two consecutive technical fouls. Georges Niang chipped in with 15 points and Mouhamed Gueye scored 12 points.

Game 1 of Orlando’s first-round playoff series at Boston will be on Sunday. The start time is TBD. It's the fourth time the Magic and Celtics will meet in the postseason. Orlando beat Boston in the first round in 1995 and in the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2009, while Boston beat Orlando in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2010.

“Facing the champs, it’s a great opportunity to see and play against the best team in the league,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “They are the champs still until somebody beats them. What they do and what they present is a lot of challenges, and you have to find a way to figure that out.”

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