DETROIT -- The Orlando Magic were right there. All you want on the road is the chance to win the ball game.
When Paolo Banchero completed his assault on the Detroit Pistons' defense with a three-pointer to cut the deficit to three with a minute to play, everyone could feel the pressure and tension mounting.
Orlando gave itself the chance to advance.
But the definition of this game came on the decisive play. This was the Pistons' night.
With less than a minute to play, Orlando forced a tough jumper from Tobias Harris that fell no good. All the Magic had to do was dig out the rebound.
Anthony Black tipped it away from Jalen Duren toward Jalen Suggs. Suggs was late and dove past it. Ausar Thompson grabbed it first to reset the possession. And that is when Cade Cunningham hit the dagger for a five-point lead with 32 seconds left in a 116-109 Pistons victory.
Every game is won on the margins. And while that critical play saw the Magic play with the necessary effort. Too much of the game was spent giving up those margins -- on the glass, at the foul line and on defense. The Pistons took the game to save their season.
"They beat us on the margins," Banchero said after Game 5. "We came out and gave them a couple [offensive rebounds] to start the game. A couple of tough bounces, a couple of times where we didn't box out. That's on us knowing that's what they want to do. We've got to be better on the glass and better on teh free throw line. We make our free throws, we have a good chance to win the game."
Orlando missed its chance to close the series out. And the team still had no one to blame but itself, even with a superb performance from Detroit.
If the Magic will advance, they need to get the margins back.
Dominated on the boards
The Orlando Magic's problems on the margins started early.
Orlando got put on its back foot almost immediately with five fouls in its first seven possessions. The Detroit Pistons were in the bonus with 9:28 to play in the first quarter, leading to 14 of the Pistons' 35 free throws in the opening quarter.
Orlando was playing catch-up because the team could not find that line of physicality until much later in the game.
That is what this series has come down to. And Orlando started behind.
Making matters worse, the Pistons grabbed an offensive rebound off three free-throw misses during that stretch. Detroit had 16 offensive rebounds for 22 second-chance points in the game.
These were all plays about sheer effort and will. That is where Detroit's desperation to stay in the series was much more apparent.
The Magic recovered to get back into the game, but the tone was set for how the Pistons would steal the victory.
"I thought we gave ourselves a chance at the end," Banchero said after Game 5. "We just didn't go away. We're down 16, I think, and we got back in it. You like to see that. But the margins is what beat us."
This is also the area the Magic won handily throughout the series. Winning these battles are why the found themselves on the precipice of advancing to the second round.
The Magic grabbed more offensive rebounds in their three wins and lost that battle in their two losses. It has been neck and neck -- Orlando has a 33.0 percent offensive rebound to Detroit's 32.1 percent. In wins, the Magic have a 35.9 offensive rebound rate to the Pistons' 28.2 percent rate. In losses, the advantage flips to Detroit 38.5-28.4 percent.
Add that to turnovers -- the Magic have had fewer turnovers in all five games, including Wednesday, when the Pistons had 17 turnovers for 22 Magic points and the Magic had 16 turnovers for 19 points -- and this series has been all about these margins.
The team that gets the extra possessions and can catch the other team out of position is typically the one that wins the game.
It should be no surprise that in a physical series like this, it would come down to something like this. This series is still about these small inches. Everything is a battle.
"We continue to fight," Wendell Carter said after Game 5. "The game wasn't going our way from the start. It's something we can build off of. It is all self-inflicted. There was nothing that they did that caused us to lose that game. We're confident going back to the crib."
That is what the Magic regained in the second half as they cut into the deficit. Orlando had 21 second-chance points on eight offensive rebounds in the game.
Orlando climbed back into the game by re-controlling these margins.
Self-inflicted wounds
Ultimately, however, the Orlando Magic pointed the finger at themselves for their defeat.
It was not merely getting outworked on the glass or losing these possession battles. They left points at the foul line.
Orlando went 16 for 30 from the foul line, making the team's uphill climb even tougher. Despite Paolo Banchero's brilliant 45-point game, he missed seven of his 12 free throws.
In a seven-point game -- and a game that was within one possession in the final two minutes -- all of those misses hurt. There is nothing to do but get back to the line and make them the next game.
Orlando has consistently gotten to the line this series -- 30 or more free throws in four of the five games (Game 1 is the only outlier). Just like in the regular season, it has always been about stepping up and making them.
"Got to step up and knock them down," coach Jamahl Mosley said after Game 5. "I don't think there is any other way to put it. You can analyze it all you want. You have to step up with confidence, take your time at the line and knock them down. You missed 14 of them and gave up 14 in the first quarter. "
All that redemption will be left for Game 6 now.
Not quite a do-or-die but a very needed game to end the series at home and avoid another dreaded Game 7 on the road -- and the frustration of losing a 3-1 series lead.
The Magic left a lot on the table in Game 5.
"I thought the resilience was great," Mosley said after Game 5. "We go in at halftime down six and we had missed nine free throws and gave up 10 offensive rebounds. If you said you would be in that situation on the road, would you take it? Yes. But that's not what we need to be doing. We need to start taking care of the things that we can, which is knocking down our free throws, boxing guys out, coming up with the 50/50 basketballs, and that's what we're going to have to do to make sure we take care of home."
Ultimately, the result came down to several key plays down the stretch. In reality, it came down to what the Magic had done so well to control all series -- the margins. Orlando cannot afford to lose them again.
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