The No. 8 Orlando Magic appeared on track to finish off a stunning first-round upset against the No. 1 Detroit Pistons, jumping out to a dominant 60-38 halftime lead and stretching that advantage to 24 early in the third, as detailed by Josh Robbins of The Athletic.
But the momentum flipped completely after that point. Orlando’s offense collapsed, producing just 19 points across the entire second half, a record-low output for a playoff half, while also enduring a brutal stretch of 23 straight missed shots.
The turnaround resulted in a 14-point loss despite their earlier control.
“I think they were just playing more desperate than us, playing harder than us,” guard Desmond Bane said. “Whether it was offensive rebounds or heating up their pressure to get steals, it really kind of took us out of our stuff, messed with our flow. I mean, it’s going to be hard to win games (when) you score 19 points in a half, and I thought a lot of that was because they came out with more energy than us in the second half.”
While the Magic have experienced momentum swings before, including when the Toronto Raptors put together a 31-0 run against them late in the regular season, this instance carried far greater consequences given the playoff setting.
“This team always shows fight,” head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “There’s no other way to put it: This does suck. You know, you have a 24-point lead, and we let it go, and I think that the reality is it’s got to sting, and it’s got to hurt right now. But you’ve got to be able to bounce back, and you’ve given yourself an opportunity to go get it done in Game 7.”
Magic Notes: Game 6 Collapse, F. Wagner, Game 7 https://t.co/DKV5mX5ke0
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) May 3, 2026
