Magic drop 4th straight game to Cavaliers despite Banchero's 37 points

Jason Beede, Orlando Sentinel on Jan 26, 2026

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After the Orlando Magic lost by 14 points to the Cleveland Cavaliers at Kia Center on Saturday night, head coach Jamahl Mosley wanted to see his team knock down shots more consistently, defend at a higher level and get off to a faster start when they traveled to Cleveland on Monday night.

Although the Magic led by 10 points after the first quarter, shot 38.1% from 3-point range in the first half and scored 18 points off 16 takeaways, Cleveland star Donovan Mitchell had other plans.

]The two-time All-NBA guard racked up 45 points to lead his team to a 114-98 victory over the Magic inside Rocket Arena.

Orlando was able to remain within striking distance throughout much of the night thanks to a season-high 37 points from Paolo Banchero, but the Cavaliers shot 44% from 3-point range (compared to Orlando’s 28%) and finished with a 52-38 scoring advantage in the paint.

Playing its third straight game without Franz Wagner (left high ankle sprain injury management), Orlando dropped its fourth game in a row while Cleveland (28-20) won its fourth consecutive contest.

Searching for a win, the Magic (23-22) remain on the road when they travel to Miami on Wednesday.

Banchero’s impact

Banchero scored on all three levels by knocking two 3-pointers, shooting 8 for 12 in the paint and 3 for 4 in the midrange.

Scoring 30-plus points for the fourth time this season, Banchero was one of two Magic players to get to the throw line. He shot 9 for 13 at the charity stripe while Desmond Bane sunk a pair.

Banchero added 10 rebounds and four assists in 40 minutes.

Bane hit a trio of triples to score 19 points. He and Anthony Black (14 points) were the only other two Magic players to finish in double figures.

Lack of relief

Although the Magic only gave up 20 points to Cleveland’s bench, Orlando itself didn’t get much help from its own reserves either.

Veteran guard Tyus Jones, who didn’t played Saturday night against the Cavaliers, was the first off the Magic bench on Monday. He and Moe Wagner (five points) were the lone Orlando reserves to hit from deep the first three frames.

Jonathan Isaac and Tristan da Silva, who didn’t play the first three quarters, are both opened the fourth. Isaac didn’t score in five minutes, but da Silva notched five points in nine fourth-quarter minutes.

The Magic bench was outscored 20-15 when Orlando’s starting lineup scored 83 of the team’s 98 total points.

Turnovers and takeaways

The Magic committed zero turnovers in the opening 12 minutes but failed to take care of the ball in the second frame.

Orlando turned the ball over six times in the second quarter, which led to seven points for Cleveland. And after scoring seven points off six takeaways during the first quarter, the Magic only added two points off four Cleveland turnovers in the second quarter.

The Cavaliers ended up scoring 16 points off 12 Orlando turnovers, three of which were committed by Jalen Suggs (four points).

Rookie watch

Second-round pick Noah Penda entered late in the first quarter and, unlike fellow rookie Jase Richardson, remained on the floor much of the rest of the night.

The French forward saw 14 minutes of action through the opening three quarters but only notched two points on 1-for-4 shooting with three rebounds, an assist and a turnover with one steal. He didn’t play in the fourth.

Richardson started the second quarter but only took one shot with one rebound and a turnover in a five minute stretch before not seeing the floor again.