The Detroit Pistons open up their 2026 NBA postseason at home in Little Caesars Arena against the Orlando Magic.
The Pistons hold the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference after a 60-22 regular season record, their first time winning 60 games since the 2005-06 season. Led by All-Star Cade Cunningham, the Pistons also are looking for their first home postseason win since 2008, losing all three home games in last year’s first-round series against the New York Knicks.
The Magic enter as the No. 8 seed after winning their Play-In Tournament game against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday. This is the first time these two teams have faced off in the playoffs since 2007-08, when Detroit won that Eastern Conference semifinals matchup in five games. Orlando finished with a 45-37 record despite injuries, with starting forward Franz Wagner (Michigan) only playing in 34 games this season.
Follow along here for live updates from Detroit News contributor Kameron Goodwill.
Pistons, Magic keep up pace as Orlando still leads, 47-40, halfway through second quarter
Anthony Black misses two free throws to start the second quarter, but Harris hits two at the line, then defensive hustle from Ron Holland leads to a Harris dunk as the Pistons cut the deficit to four points. Jenkins gets on the fastbreak and wraps a pass around his defender to Holland for another dunk. Pistons keep getting close but can cut the deficit to under two, as the Magic keep answering back with offense. The fouls are piling up for the Pistons in this quarter too, but Jenkins draws a shooting foul on Banchero and hits both free throws. These teams continue to trade buckets as a timeout is called with 6:16 left in this first half.
Magic end first quarter on 6-0 run, Pistons down, 35-27, after first quarter
Cunningham turns it over for a Bane layup, but Tobias Harris answers with a layup, then Daniss Jenkins comes off the bench for the first time and immediately drills his first three to bring the Pistons within two. Orlando quickly answers with a 6-0 run to end the quarter, punctuated by a Goga Bitazde putback dunk with nine seconds left as the Magic take a 35-27 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Pistons beginning to find rhythm, still trail Magic 27-20 in first quarter
A Franz Wagner and-one bucket, plus the free throw, extends Orlando’s lead to 18-5 over the Pistons, but a Cade Cunningham 3-pointer finally ends the Magic’s 10-0 run. Orlando’s starting to come back to earth shooting wise but the Pistons are still having trouble on both sides of the ball, as Suggs hits an and-one layup over Duren with the free throw to give the Magic a 27-15 lead. Caris LeVert hits a big three, then Isaiah Stewart stuffs Paolo Banchero with a huge block, leading to a Cunningham dunk as the Magic call timeout with 3:06 left in this opening quarter.
Pistons start cold from offense early, down 13-5 against hot-shooting Magic in first quarter
Pistons win the tip-off in front of a loud crowd at Little Caesars Arena, but it’s Jalen Suggs hitting a deep three for the first points of this game. Duncan Robinson answers back with a three for Detroit’s first bucket tonight. The Pistons are struggling on offense so far, but Tobias Harris draws a foul as Desmond Bane has two early fouls and Harris hits both free throws. A steal and dunk from Suggs gives the Magic a 13-5 lead with 8:27 left in the first quarter as the Pistons call timeout, with Orlando shooting 3-for-4 from three early to help build this lead.
Starting lineups
Detroit Pistons
PG Cade Cunningham, SG Duncan Robinson, SF Ausar Thompson, PF Tobias Harris, C Jalen Duren
Orlando Magic
PG Jalen Suggs, SG Desmond Bane, SF Paolo Banchero, PF Franz Wagner, C Wendell Carter Jr.
NBA Playoffs, first round: No. 8 Magic vs. No. 1 Pistons
Game 1: at Detroit, Sunday, 6:30 p.m. (NBC)
Game 2: at Detroit, Wednesday, 7:00 p.m. (ESPN)
Game 3: at Orlando, Saturday, 1:00 p.m. (Peacock)
Game 4: at Orlando, Monday, April 27, TBD (TBD)
x-Game 5: at Detroit, Wednesday, April 29, TBD (TBD)
x-Game 6: at Orlando, Friday, May 1, TBD (TBD)
x-Game 7: at Detroit, Sunday, May 3 TBD (TBD)x-If necessary
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Live updates: Pistons still down, 47-40, in second quarter of Game 1
Reporting by Kameron Goodwill, Special to The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
