Paolo Banchero was brilliant in Game 5 against the Detroit Pistons, but the Orlando Magic did not do enough to win a decisive game.
It took a 45-point, career playoff-high performance by Paolo Banchero to get the Orlando Magic close to closing out the Detroit Pistons in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series, but it was not enough in a 116-109 loss.
Banchero matched the 45 points produced by Pistons star Cade Cunningham, which was also a career postseason point total by the latter, but Banchero did not attribute his team’s loss to Cunningham’s performance.
"Just free throws," Banchero said. "And I would say offensive rebounds, second chance points; they beat us on the margins."
Banchero and the Magic struggled immensely from the free throw line. By the end of the game, they had converted just 16 of their 30 free throw attempts. Conversely, the Pistons hit 28 of their 35 attempts. In a game decided by seven points, shortcomings at the charity stripe made a critical difference.
Moreover, the Magic lost the battle of the offensive rebounds, 16-8. Overall, the Pistons grabbed 16 more rebounds and outscored Orlando in the paint, 50-36.
"I mean, yeah, go up there, you want to make your free throws," Banchero said. "They don't go in, that's on me missing, you know, whatever it was, six or seven free throws. And in the offensive rebounds, you know, we think we came out and gave them a couple to start the game and a couple tough bounces a couple times where we didn't box out.
"So, that's just on us, knowing that's what they want to do," he added. "They want to crash hard and it's got to be better on the glass. And then, obviously better on the free-throw line, you know, we make our free throws, you know, we got a real chance of winning the game."
Banchero led the Magic in missed free throws after going 5-12 at the line. Forward Jamal Cain had the next greatest disparity after missing four of his seven attempts.
The battle between Banchero and Cunningham entered the record books as they became just the second pair of former No.1 picks to score 40-plus points against one another, joining Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson who scored 44 points and 48 points respectively in Game 1 of the 2001 NBA Finals.
Additionally, they became just the second pair of opponents in NBA playoff history to each notch 45 points in a postseason game, joining Jamal Murray and Donovan Mitchell, who accomplished the feat in 2020.
However, Banchero was not focused on the statistical magnitude of their battle.
"I mean, in the moment, you're not really thinking about it," Banchero said. "You're just thinking about getting the win. But, sure, one day you look back and be like ‘that was a hell of a game.’ But, you know, me and him been going at it since AAU, so no surprise there."