Desmond Bane poured in 37 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the visiting Orlando Magic edged the Detroit Pistons 112-109 on Friday to advance to the knockout round of the NBA Cup.
Orlando finished 4-0 in the East Group B of the event and won for the fifth time in their last six games. The Pistons lost for the second time in a row following their 13-game winning streak.
Franz Wagner had 21 points and seven rebounds while Anthony Black tossed in 16 points off the bench. Jalen Suggs added 14 points with four steals.
Cade Cunningham carried the Pistons with 39 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists but also committed eight of Detroit’s 24 turnovers. Tobias Harris had 18 points while Jalen Duren supplied 16 points with 12 rebounds.
Bane carried the Magic back from an early 13-point deficit, scoring 21 first-half points as Orlando took a 59-58 lead into intermission. Black had 12 points at the break.
The game remained tight throughout the third quarter. The Magic finished the quarter on a 15-7 run to carry an 89-84 lead into the fourth.
Bane reached the 30-point mark when Cunningham was called for a technical in the final minute of the quarter. Cunningham reached the 30-point mark on two free throws with 1.1 seconds remaining in the quarter.
Black opened the fourth with a midrange jumper and Bane made a layup to stretch Orlando’s lead to nine points. Bane soon made two free throws to push the lead to 10.
Down 100-90, the Pistons reeled off 10 straight points, capped by a Cunningham 3-pointer with 4:10 to play. A Cunningham basket with 2:48 left gave Detroit a 106-105 lead but Bane’s three-point play with 2:11 left put Orlando back on top.
Clinging to a 110-109 lead, Orlando grabbed three offensive rebounds that forced Javonte Green to foul Suggs with 6.3 seconds left. Suggs made both free throws.
Cunningham was fouled with 4.7 seconds left but missed the first free throw and then intentionally missed the second. The Pistons got the rebound but Duncan Robinson’s last-ditch 3-point try was blocked by Black.
