Cooper Flagg scores 51, but balanced Magic down Mavs

Franz Wagner went for 18 points in just 17 minutes, Wendell Carter Jr. led the way with 28 and the Orlando Magic used balanced scoring to easily overcome Cooper Flagg's season-high 51 in a 138-127 triumph over the host Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

Desmond Bane chipped in with 27 points and Tristan da Silva and Jalen Suggs added 19 apiece for the Magic (41-36), which matched wins by the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors and Charlotte Hornets in a tightly bunched competition for the final two playoff spots and top three play-in berths in the Eastern Conference.

Flagg shot 19-for-30 for the Mavericks (24-53), who lost for the eighth time in their last nine games.

Max Christie buried a pair of 3-pointers and Flagg nailed a third as the Mavericks got the better of the visitors for most of the first six minutes, building a 17-14 lead.

Orlando dominated the rest of the way, running up 38- and 33-point quarters to go up 71-58 by halftime, before putting the hammer down with a 40-point uprising in the third period en route to a 30-point lead in the fourth.

The 138-point total was Orlando's second-highest of the season behind only a 144-point effort in November at Philadelphia.

In just his second game back from a sprained left ankle that had sidelined him since Feb. 11, Wagner was able to call it a night early after having hit eight of 12 shots. He had played 20 minutes on Wednesday against the Hawks.

The Magic outshot the Mavericks 56% to 46.3% overall and 53.8% to 33.3% from beyond the 3-point arc.

Carter's season-high total came in 36 minutes as he fell two points shy of his career-best. He did a lot of his damage at the free throw line, where he went 10-for-10.

Bane tied Paolo Banchero, who had 10 points, for Orlando rebounding honors with seven, while Suggs was the game leader in assists with nine. Both Bane and Suggs also found time for three steals.

Flagg 51 points were the most for a rookie this season, surpassing the 49 he'd put up against Charlotte in January. He also had a 42-point game at Utah in December, giving him the three highest scoring games this year among rookies.

Brandon Williams backed Flagg with 23 points, while Klay Thompson had 18 and Christie 14. Ryan Nembhard led the Mavericks in rebounds with a game-high-tying seven while matching Williams for team honors in assists with five.

--Field Level Media