The Celtics made just 12 shots in the second half after 23 in the first. They were 8 for 32 from the 3-point line — both season lows — while Kristaps Porzingis missed eight of his 10 shots. The 104 points were also a season low.
Porzingis got into a scrape with Orlando’s Jalen Suggs and Goga Bitadze with 3:36 left in the game that led to Bitadze’s ejection. The sellout crowd, including many Celtics faithful, went into a frenzy late as each team traded baskets.
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The Celtics went on a 8-0 run to cut the deficit to 105-104 with under a minute left, but Horford’s left corner three rimmed out.
It spoiled a 35-point effort from Jaylen Brown, who was 15 for 29 from the floor but made just 1 of 7 from beyond the arc.
The game changed completely in the opening minutes of the third quarter when the Magic went on a 7-0 run, prompting a timeout from Joe Mazzulla.
Matters didn’t get much better. Da Silva scored 5 consecutive points to cut the Celtics lead to 64-59, but Jaylen Brown countered with two buckets in 11 seconds.
The Magic kept coming. Behind reserve Cole Anthony, they pushed the pace and attacked the paint, scoring on short jumpers or free throws. Anthony’s reverse layup gave the Magic their first lead since the first quarter and the Kia Center was jumping.
The Celtics were outscored 36-21 in that period, going 5 for 19 from the field with seven turnovers.
The Celtics again attacked the paint against the defensive-minded Magic instead of the 3-point line. Of their 58 first-half points, 36 were scored in the paint as Brown, Derrick White, and Jrue Holiday took turns gashing the Magic inside.
Orlando was hanging around behind several of their young core, including Jett Howard, the son of Juwan Howard and Da Silva. Trevelin Queen’s two free throws cut the Boston lead to 50-41 with 2:16 left in the half. Queen tied for a career high with 17 points.
After Kristaps Porzingis hit two free throws, Holiday scored on a jumper. The Celtics then increased their advantage to 58-43 when Brown scored on a strong postup of Anthony Black and then Holiday stole the inbounds pass and scored a layup.
The Celtics shot 51.1 percent in the first half and were 20 for 30 on 2-pointers. Brown led the club with 19 points while White and Holiday each added 10. The only blemish in the first 24 minutes was eight turnovers, caused by the fast pace.
The game got off to a bizarre beginning when Tatum was suddenly listed as questionable with a non-COVID illness just minutes before tipoff. While Tatum remained in the locker room and Horford replaced him in the starting lineup, the Celtics continued to list Tatum as questionable.
Tatum did not join his teammates in the first half although he was still listed as questionable.
Brown assumed the primary scoring duties with Tatum fighting illness. He scored 15 points in the opening period, attacking the basket at will with his physicality.
The Magic, missing three of their top four scorers — Franz and Mo Wagner, Paolo Banchero — were forced to play scrappy and fast, pushing the ball up the floor at every opportunity. The Celtics chose to run with the Magic and it resulted in 10 fastbreak points in the first period as they took a 32-21 lead.
The Celtics were going to enter this game completely healthy until Tatum’s illness. Sam Hauser returned from a two-game absence with back soreness and collected 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals in 16 minutes.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.
