Los Angeles (AFP) – The Orlando Magic crushed the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-89 this Saturday and tied this first round tie of the NBA playoffs 2-2, while the Thunder crushed the Pelicans and put them on the brink of the elimination.
First modification: 04/28/2024 – 00:21Last modification: 04/28/2024 – 00:20
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In Orlando (Florida), Donovan Mitchell and the rest of the Cavaliers’ figures could not avoid being overwhelmed by the Magic’s suffocating defense for the second consecutive game.
If they fell by 38 points on Thursday, Cleveland came up short this time in the second half, in which they scored a mere 29 points.
German Franz Wagner, 22, was the star of the game at the Kia Center in Orlando (Florida) with 34 points and 13 rebounds for the Magic.
The performance of the forward, who is competing for the first time in the playoffs, compensated for the weak game of the local star, All-Star center Paolo Banchero, who had 9 points and 4 rebounds.
The Cavaliers went into the locker room dominating with a nine-point lead (51-60), but their attack got out of control after the break, allowing Orlando to go on a 31-5 run.
Cleveland went six long minutes without scoring until finding itself with an already insurmountable deficit of 22 points (92-70) at the beginning of the last quarter.
Caris LeVert finally ended the streak with a mid-range shot, but the forward was one of the many Cavaliers players erratic in shooting, with 2 points in a statistic of 1-7.
Cleveland star Donovan Mitchell finished with 18 points (5-14) and center Jarrett Allen with another 21 and 9 rebounds.
“Our guys made the right adjustments,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said of his team’s big second half.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, leader of the Oklahoma City Thunder, during Saturday’s game against the New Orleans Pelicans. © Sean Gardner / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
“They realized it was about ball movement, sharing it, moving it, trusting the pass,” Mosley said, calling their defensive effort “special.”
This Eastern Conference series will return to Cleveland on Tuesday for Game 5.
Sweep in sight
In the second game on Saturday, the Oklahoma City Thunder sealed a peaceful 106-85 victory on the New Orleans Pelicans’ court and advanced 3-0 in this West bracket.
The Thunder, the first seed in the conference, will have the opportunity on Monday to seal the sweep and overcome a round of playoffs for the first time since 2016 when, led by Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, they reached the Western Finals.
Their current leader, Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was the game’s top scorer with 24 points and 8 assists and forward Jalen Williams contributed another 21 points and 9 rebounds.
After an agonizing victory in the opening game, Oklahoma City is overwhelming the Pelicans who have lost much of their offensive danger with the loss of their star, Zion Williamson.
Forward Brandon Ingram has shown himself incapable of assuming that role and this Saturday he finished with 19 points while point guard CJ McCollum was left with 16.
Saturday’s playoff day held two more games. The Boston Celtics were trying to make up for the last loss against the Miami Heat and regain control of the series, while the Denver Nuggets had the opportunity to settle the tie against the Los Angeles Lakers with a fourth and definitive victory.
© 2024 AFP
2024-04-27 22:21:00
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