Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The Orlando Magic stunned the Detroit Pistons 112-101 on Sunday as the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics opened the NBA playoffs with big wins. The Thunder, trying to become the first team since Golden State in 2017 and 2018 to repeat as champions, came out firing in a 119-84 victory over the Phoenix Suns. The Celtics, seeded second in the Eastern Conference behind Detroit, dominated the Philadelphia 76ers 123-91.
San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama made a triumphant playoff debut, scoring 35 points as the Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers 111-98. Oklahoma City looked rested and recharged after a week off since they locked up the Western Conference top seed and best record in the league. But Eastern Conference top seeds Detroit looked rusty, and the Magic, who battled through the play-in to bag their playoff berth, took advantage. Paolo Banchero scored 23 points, and Franz Wagner scored 11 of his 19 in the fourth quarter as the Magic withstood a 39-point performance from Pistons star Cade Cunningham.
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Detroit trailed by as many as 13 in the first quarter and by 11 early in the third. A Cunningham three-pointer tied it midway through the third, but the Magic pulled away again. “I liked our composure the whole game, our energy,” Wagner said after the Magic handed the Pistons an 11th straight home playoff defeat, a skid dating back to 2008. “(We) just didn’t come out with the right energy, gave them life early on,” Cunningham said. “Then we had to deal with that for the rest of the game.” But Cunningham remained confident the Pistons can turn things around in the best-of-seven first-round series. “There’s no confidence drop from us,” he said. “It’ll be a long, fun series.”
Fans were revved in Oklahoma City, where reigning NBA Most Valuable Player and NBA Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 25 points. He connected on just five of 18 from the field but made 15 of his 17 free throw attempts and added seven assists and two blocked shots before sitting out the entire fourth quarter. Jalen Williams added 22 points and Chet Holmgren scored 16 for the Thunder. Devin Booker scored 23 points for Phoenix, but the Suns were otherwise stifled by the Thunder. “It was a great defensive performance,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “We forced them to earn everything.”
In Boston, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined for 51 points as the Celtics led wire to wire against the Sixers. Tatum led the charge, racking up 21 of his 25 points in the first half. Brown poured in 16 of his 26 in the third quarter alone. “It’s an incredible feeling,” said Tatum, whose unexpected late-season return from a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in last year’s playoffs has plenty of pundits picking Boston, not Detroit, to emerge from the East. “Not too long ago I wasn’t even sure if I was going to be able to play this season, let alone get an opportunity to play in the playoffs.”
In San Antonio, the second-seeded Spurs led by as many as 16 points on the way to a 59-49 halftime lead. Portland, led by 30 points and 10 rebounds from Deni Avdija, cut the deficit to two early in the third quarter. But the Spurs pulled away again, thrilling the San Antonio fans who have waited since 2019 to see the five-time champion franchise return to the playoffs. “We were solid, but job’s not done,” said Wembanyama, who earlier in the day joined Gilgeous-Alexander and Denver’s Nikola Jokic as a finalist for regular-season MVP honors.
© 2024 AFP
