Celtics, Without Jayson Tatum, Beat Magic 109-100 to Take 2-0 Series Lead

BOSTON – Jamahl Mosley made one thing clear before Wednesday night's Game 2 matchup with the Boston Celtics: Yes, Jayson Tatum is an "unbelievable" scorer, but his Orlando Magic would still have their hands full with the team that took the floor.

Led by 36 points from Jaylen Brown, second-seeded Boston's top-to-bottom firepower – even with Tatum sidelined – proved too much for seventh-seeded Orlando to handle in an "up and down" contest.

By protecting homecourt with a 109-100 victory, the Celtics take a 2-0 series lead as the best-of-seven set heads to the Kia Center for Games 3 and 4 this upcoming weekend.

Paolo Banchero tallied 32 points for Orlando – his fifth 30-point performance in nine career playoff appearances – and added nine rebounds and seven assists. Franz Wagner scored 25 points, and after the star duo were the only Magic players in double figures in Game 1, both starting center Wendell Carter Jr. (16 points, eight rebounds) and reserve guard Anthony Black (11 points) hurt them.

The Magic shot 47.6 percent from the field and 7-29 from three. The Celtics finished at 45.0 percent and made 12 threes in the victory.

Boston scored 20 second-chance points on 13 offensive rebounds, part of Boston's plus-12 advantage on the glass. Orlando turned 11 Celtic turnovers into 15 points.

Here's what else stood out after the final buzzer:

Another poor 3Q haunts Magic

Just like Game 1, the Magic and Celtics were entrenched in a close battle after 24 minutes in Game 2. And just like in Game 1, Boston seized control of the contest with a feverish third-quarter run.

Boston came out of the locker room on an 11-2 run, which forced Orlando to burn two timeouts. The Magic responded with a 9-2 run to draw within five after the second stoppage, but the Celtics answered with a 9-0 run of their own to build back a 14-point advantage.

"I think we came out, we got some great looks early and they didn't drop," Mosley said. "A lot of those allowed them to get early, easy transition baskets.

"When those shots don't fall early, we've got to make sure we're still digging in on the defensive end. Long shots were long rebounds, and they were able to get out."

After Orlando held its opposition to 35.2 percent shooting in a 50-point first half, Boston shot 12-20 and outscored the Magic 31-24 in the frame.

That forced the Magic to fight uphill against the defending champions. Orlando, despite pulling within two possessions multiple times, never fully completed a comeback.

"They came out of the locker room in the third quarter, went on a run and we had trouble getting back from that the rest of the game," Banchero said. "The start of that third killed us."

Free throw discrepancy (and misses)

The free-throw pendulum swung heavily in the Celtics' favor.

Boston, owner of the NBA's lowest FTA rate this season, had already eclipsed their 18 total free throws from the Game 1 victory by halftime with 23 attempts. For the game, it made 25-of-33 looks at the foul line.

Orlando, who shot free throws at the league's second-highest rate all year long, had 10 attempts at the break and got just 24 attempts Wednesday. The Magic converted 15 of those looks – a percentage of just 62.5, which ties for their fifth-lowest this year.

Asked postgame what challenges the Magic faced in defending without fouling, Mosley said he "was not the one to answer that question.

"There were some things you'd like to look at and say differently," the fourth-year coach continued. "I'm not one to complain about any of it, but there's a reality that all of our starters had two fouls at one point. There was a time it was 16-2 in the free-throw count. That's part of how the game goes, and that's what we've got to learn to push through and fight through, and that's what these guys did."

No Tatum, no problem

Minus the Celtics' superstar forward, the Magic were presented perhaps their best chance to steal a road game from the defending champions.

Tatum's absence from Game 2 was the first of his career in the playoffs. He'd played and started all 114 previous postseason games since his arrival to the franchise.

After being held to 17 points on 8-22 shooting in Game 1, he sat out Game 2 because of a bone bruise in his right wrist. Tatum sustained the injury in the fourth quarter following a hard foul, and there was conversation between games over whether the foul had something extra to it. Al Horford started in Tatum's place, who watched the contest with a black wrap on the injured wrist.

But as Mosley warned, the Celtics' supporting cast made up for Tatum's scoring in bunches.

After a 16-point, 6-for-14 performance Sunday, Brown's leading contributions sparked the Celtics to the commanding series advantage.

"He played a hell of a game," Wagner said of Brown postgame. "Real efficient, hit a couple of tough shots from three. He's a great player, and we've got to make sure we keep making it tough on him and not send him to the line as much."

That was followed by 20 points from Kristaps Porzingis, 17 points from Derrick White, 14 from newly crowned Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard, and 11 from Jrue Holiday.

Up Next

Orlando hosts Boston for Game 3 at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, April 25 on ESPN.

To see the full up-to-date series schedule, click here.

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Another poor 3Q haunts Magic

Free throw discrepancy (and misses)

No Tatum, no problem

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