Magic beat Bulls 113-98, still hoping to finish as high as No. 2 in the East
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero scored 24 points, Jalen Suggs added 19 and the Orlando Magic kept up a playoff push that could land them as high as second in the Eastern Conference with a 113-98 win over the Chicago Bulls on Sunday night.
The Magic (46-32) moved into at least a tie for third place in the East by completing a four-game sweep of the Bulls.
DeMar DeRozan had 30 points for the Bulls and Javonte Green, starting for the first time this season in place of injured forward Alex Caruso, added 15 points and eight rebounds.
The Bulls, locked into the bottom half of the Eastern Conference play-in bracket with four games left to play, shot 50.7% from the field but had 21 turnovers.
Green, coming off a career-high 25 points in a win over New York on Friday night after spending most of the season in the G League, shot 6 for 7 in 22 minutes.
Magic forward Franz Wagner left the game in the third quarter with a sprained right ankle after scoring 16 points. Jonathan Isaac played only five minutes of the first half before leaving with a sore back.
Caruso had ankle and toe issues after playing 32 minutes Friday night.
A couple of 3-pointers by Green was all the offense the Bulls mustered in the first eight minutes and they fell behind by 19 in the first quarter.
DeRozan got them back into the game with a big second quarter that included a short jumper from the lane in the final seconds, leaving Orlando with a 56-44 lead at the break.
The Magic led 89-68 late in the third. DeRozan led another charge that got Orlando’s lead down to 96-90 with 6:49 left, but a series of Chicago turnovers resulted in a 12-1 Magic run that Wendell Carter Jr. capped with a 3-pointer for a 108-91 lead with 3:16 left.
UP NEXT
Bulls: Host New York on Tuesday.
Magic: Visit Houston on Tuesday.