Cade Cunningham Scored 32 points and got top seed detroit pistons pulled off an incredible rally on Friday night, erasing a 24-point deficit and beating orlando magic 93-79 To force a Game 7 in their Eastern Conference first round series.
Detroit trailed by 22 at halftime and Orlando’s lead was 62–38 at the start of the third quarter. The Magic looked set to become the seventh No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the conference quarterfinal round.
And then everything went wrong for Orlando. Everything.
The Magic became the first team since 1996–97 – when play-by-play began being tracked digitally – to lose at home after leading by at least 24 points with a chance to win the series.
That number, and many other numbers, were simply astonishing. The Magic missed 23 consecutive shots from the field, Detroit went on a 35-5 run and just like that, the narrative of the game – and possibly the series – changed wildly.
To wit, the Magic shot 11% (4 of 37) from the field in the second half, according to ESPN Research, which is the worst field-goal percentage by any team in a regular season or playoff half in the play-by-play era (since 1997–98).
tobias harris Scored 22 points for Detroit, which will host Game 7 on Sunday. paolo banchero And Desmond Bain Each scored 17 points for Orlando, which is now 0-2 in shutout chances in this series.
The first quarter was back-and-forth, with Detroit leading 26–25 after the first 12 minutes.
Second quarter: Magic 35, Pistons 12.
Orlando outscored the Pistons 17-0 from 3-point range and the free-throw line in that quarter, holding Detroit to 2-for-11 shooting in the first 5:48 of the period and taking a 60-38 lead into the half.
The 22-point lead at halftime was the fourth-largest lead by a No. 1 seed over a No. 8 seed in this format. And there was never an example of a No. 8 seed – at least in the play-by-play era, which began in 1996–97 – outscoring the No. 1 seed by 23 or more points in any quarter of a playoff game.
It seemed like it was over. It was not. Because 3rd quarter: Pistons 24, Magic 11. The tone was set for the return, and when the night ended the crowd at Orlando’s Kia Center roared as they departed for possibly the final time this season.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
