Banchero's Big Night, 17 Threes Help Magic Cruise Past Wizards

The Orlando Magic had a stress-free trip to the nation's capital Friday night, leading the 15-win Washington Wizards by as many as 33 points in a 120-105 victory.

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards forward Anthony Gill (16) during the second quarter at Capital One Arena. | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Orlando Magic handled their business Friday night in the nation's capital.

Led by Paolo Banchero's 30 points and eight rebounds, all five Magic starters scored in double figures as they dismissed the 15-win Washington Wizards 120-105.

"I think we were all just locked in from the tip," Banchero said postgame. "We knew coming in we couldn't play around with these guys, because if you give these guys confidence, they can beat you."

For just the eighth time this season, the Magic scored at least 120 points in a game. Orlando led by as many as 33 points before emptying the bench.

Franz Wagner followed Banchero with 21 points and eight boards. Wendell Carter Jr. posted 16 and 12 rebounds for his 10th double-double this year. Orlando's backcourt of Cory Joseph and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope each finished with 11.

Anthony Black filled up the stat sheet with 13 points, six rebounds and six assists in 25 minutes off the Orlando bench.

The Magic, who are now 33-38 with 11 games remaining, maintain eighth place in the Eastern Conference. Despite winning five of their past 10 games, the last-place Wizards have the NBA's worst record at 15-54 after their latest loss.

The two teams play one more time on April 3. Orlando has won the first three matchups now by a combined 62 points.

Washington's 28th-ranked defense struggled to slow Orlando's 28th-ranked attack. The Magic made 17 threes – just the sixth time they have knocked down as many triples this season — and matched their game average (104 points) one possession into the fourth quarter.

The transition game aided their efforts, scoring 20 points off of 20 Wizard turnovers and tallying 24 fastbreak points.

Banchero and his 6-foot-10, 250-pound frame wasted little time to establish control, extending his career-long streak of 20-point games to 12 by halftime. Overall, it was Banchero's 13th game of 30 or more points this season — including four of the past five.

Washington's 10 threes kept them in striking distance through 24 minutes, but Orlando's 35-17 third quarter put the game out of reach. That earned Banchero, and soon after his fellow starters, the rest of the night off.

"We just stayed aggressive throughout the whole game," Carter said postgame. "The third quarter is where we've struggled, but I think that might've been our best quarter this year.

"It's always good when we come out and put away teams in the third. I think we did a fantastic job on both ends of the court, sharing the ball, getting stops, limiting them to one shot. That's something that we've got to continue to do if we want to go far in the postseason."

It's also what Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said postgame he was most proud of in the victory.

"We've talked about it, we've challenged them," the fourth-year coach said. "Tonight was a lot different than what we saw the other night. I think that level of focus and being able to come out of halftime and really understand what we needed to do to put this team away."

Orlando dominated the boards 55-41 and scored 13 second-chance points on 13 offensive rebounds. The Magic outscored the Wizards 48-38 in the paint.

Joseph made his fifth consecutive game as Cole Anthony missed the game with a lingering left big toe strain. Trevelin Queen sat out with a left ankle sprain.

All 13 of the Magic's available players saw the floor with the result decided, including two-way guard Mac McClung making just his second appearance this season.

Up Next

The Magic return to Orlando to host the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday, March 24, at 7 p.m. ET.

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