The Magic Destroyed the Hornets by 31 in the Biggest Play-In Blowout Ever — Charlotte’s Dream Season Ends in a Nightmare
Three days ago, the Charlotte Hornets pulled off one of the wildest play-in wins in NBA history. LaMelo Ball hit a game-winner in overtime. Miles Bridges blocked a shot at the buzzer. The whole city was buzzing.
Friday night, the Magic made sure none of that mattered.
Orlando came out and absolutely destroyed Charlotte 121-90 in the do-or-die play-in game for the East’s 8-seed. The 31-point margin is the largest in any play-in game ever, according to ESPN Research. The Magic led 38-16 after the first quarter, had a 35-point lead by halftime, and never even broke a sweat in the second half.
Paolo Banchero had 25 points, six assists, and five boards. Desmond Bane and Jalen Suggs suffocated LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges on the perimeter. Charlotte didn’t score 30 points until there were three minutes left in the second quarter. This was a clinic.
Orlando Came Out With a Different Energy
Magic coach Jamahl Mosley showed his team an NCAA Tournament highlight reel before the game — the “One Shining Moment” montage. His message was simple: this is one-and-done basketball. Either you extend your season or you go home.
“When you play with a sense of desperation and urgency, when you know you’re either going home or extending your season, that’s what it looks like,” Mosley said. “There are no second chances.”
The Magic forced 14 turnovers in the first half and turned those into 22 points. They had 24 fast-break points before the break. The defense was elite — Mosley called it “about as elite as we have seen in a while.” And Charlotte had no answer for any of it.
Banchero was locked in from the jump. He’d scored just 18 points and missed all five of his threes in the loss to Philly earlier in the week, and he clearly took that personally. “Great players, you got to respond,” Banchero said. “That’s what they pay you to do. You can’t just settle for subpar performances, especially in situations like this.”
Charlotte’s Incredible Run Comes to an Abrupt End
LaMelo Ball scored 23 in the loss, but by the time he got going the game was already over. The Hornets’ nine-year playoff drought — the longest active streak in the NBA — continues. Charlotte went 32-16 since January 1, earned the 9-seed, won that insane overtime game against Miami, and then ran into a buzzsaw.
Ball took the loss in stride. “We dug ourselves a hole that was too big. We couldn’t get out of it,” he said. “It’s all learning lessons. You live, you learn. You evolve.”
It’s a tough way to end a season that gave Charlotte fans more hope than they’ve had in a long time. LaMelo, Miles Bridges, and Brandon Miller are all still young. The core is there. But the gap between a feel-good regular season and real playoff basketball got exposed in about 12 minutes on Friday night.
Orlando Gets Detroit
The Magic now travel to Detroit to face the top-seeded Pistons in Game 1 on Sunday. It’s going to be physical. Both teams play a similar brand of aggressive, defensive-minded basketball, and Mosley knows it.
“There’s a physicality to this game that’s going to be real,” Mosley said. “There’s going to be a lot of aggression. It’s going to be a dogfight.”
Orlando gave up four unprotected first-round picks, a pick swap, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Cole Anthony to get Desmond Bane from Memphis last summer. They’re all-in on this window with Banchero and Franz Wagner. Now it’s time to see if that investment pays off against the best team in the East.
