The Osceola Magic celebrated their first ever G League Eastern Conference Championship after beating the Maine Celtics, 135-122, on Sunday night at Silver Spurs Arena behind Mac McClung’s franchise playoff record 42 points.
There’s little time to enjoy this success, as the G League best-of-3-championship finals begin Tuesday with Game One at 8 p.m. at the Silver Spurs Arena. They'll host the Western Conference champion Stockton Kings, who they beat twice in the regular season at home on March 14 and 16. The Kings still were the West No. 1 seed.
“I mean it’s unbelievable,” Osceola Magic coach Dylan Murphy said when asked about winning the Eastern Conference Championship. “Obviously, you goal is to win at the beginning of the year. There are so many more NBA players in this league than last year, so for us to get here is really a testament to our players and the work they put in all year long.”
McClung dominated offensively, with six assists to go with his 42 points. Most came on driving layups in the paint as he consistently exposed the Celtics' weaker inside defense. He shot 16-for-26 overall, 3-for-7 on 3-pointers, and 3-for-4 from the free throw line.
“I’m like out of things to say about Mac,” Murphy said. “I mean 42 points of efficiency. [He] shared the ball and defended really well. I mean the guy is an NBA player. And when he gets his shot he is going to stick.”
McClung credited his teammates with his success.
“I felt like I got in rhythm,” McClung said. “I started calling plays and my teammates said we are running this play that we ran five times in a row. It’s hard not to be in the flow and rhythm are calling plays to get you the ball.”
Jalen Slawson, who added a game-high nine assists, and Ethan Thompson each had 20 points, and Slawson added nine assists. Myron Gardner and Javonte Smart added 17 points apiece. JD Davison, the G League MVP, scored 34 points and dished 11 assists for the Celtics, but it wasn't enough.
McClung was the 2024 G League MVP.
The Magic were not content to trade baskets with the Celtics in the 4th quarter holding an 11-point lead. Osceola hustled running fast breaks to build the cushion to 19 points, 116-97, with 7:13 left to punch their ticket to the G League finals.
“When you’re up 9, you want to get to 14,” McClung said. “You go to 14 and then 16 and you can start playing the numbers game, and the clock, and stuff like that.”
The Magic led 35-33 at the end of an entertaining first quarter. The teams each hit six 3-pointers in the period -shooting around 50 percent. The rebounds were virtually even as Osceola held an 11-10 advantage.
Midway through the second quarter, the Magic took a 47-35 lead on a 12-0 run including a McClung 3-pointer and two driving contested layups. The Magic stingy help defense forced 10 Celtics first half turnovers. The game was physical throughout with both teams having players in foul trouble with Osceola having two players with three fouls and another three with two apiece. The Celtics eventually clawed back into the game, but the Magic still led 68-65 at halftime.
The third quarter was a back-and-forth affair with numerous lead changes until the Magic went on an 16-6 run to take an 96-85 lead in the final minutes. Smart’s 3-pointer capped the third quarter scoring for the Magic, giving them a 100-89 lead heading into the final quarter.
“I thought the game turned in the third quarter,“ Murphy said. “We turned it up defensively a bit and pushed that lead out. We weren’t spread out, so we were able to contain penetration a little better which allowed us to impact the threes a little more.”
With just over seven minutes left in the game, three Osceola plays served as the dagger. Up 111-97, McClung rebounded a missed Celtics' three pointer, then fed Smart who hit a running layup. Then McClung picked off Maine's quick outlet pass and found Slawson. He found a wide-open Myron Gardner, who coolly drained a three-pointer to extend the lead to 19 with 7:14 that ignited the fans and sapped the Celtics' energy.
Speaking of, Murphy said he felt the Silver Spurs Arena crowd was a factor in the game.
“There was a sequence we got a deflection and then a layup on the other end and they called a timeout,” Murphy recalled. “The crowd was going crazy, and we had to calm ourselves down a bit. The energy was so big in the building. It was unbelievable and really pushed us.”
McClung said he plans to bring the G League Championship to the fans in Osceola, so they better get ready for a celebration.
“I’m a winner,” McClung, who has made the playoffs every year in the G League and win a title with Delaware, said. “That’s what I do. That’s what my track record says.”
The Magic, playing then in Lakeland, won the 2021 G League title in the wake of COVID-19, when the G League had 17 teams play a 15-game schedule followed by a single-elimination tournament for the top eight teams.
