Anthony, Magic claim 7th seed with 120-95 win over Hawks in Play-In Tournament

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Cole Anthony came off the bench with 26 points and six assists to lead the Orlando Magic to a 120-95 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night in the first game of the Play-In Tournament.

Paolo Banchero had 17 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Magic, and Wendell Carter Jr. added 19 points and seven rebounds. Anthony Black scored 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting off the bench in the Magic’s first appearance in a play-in game.

Earning the Eastern Conference’s seventh seed after a 41-41 regular season, the Magic will start their first-round playoff series at Boston on Sunday. Orlando split its four games against the defending NBA champs this season, but the Celtics rested their top six players in a loss at Orlando last week.

“It’s a great opportunity to play against the best team in the league, and they’re the champs still until somebody beats 'em,” said Magic coach Jamahl Mosley. “What they present is a lot of challenges, and we have to try to find a way to figure that out.”

Trae Young led the Hawks with 28 points and six assists before getting two technical fouls and an automatic ejection with 4:47 left in the game.

“I thought we did a good job on Paolo and Franz (Wagner),” said Hawks coach Quin Snyder, “and they had some other players who really stepped up and made plays.”

The Hawks, who have reached the playoffs through the play-in route in two of the last three seasons, will play at home Friday night for the eighth spot against the winner of Wednesday night’s game at Chicago between the Bulls and the Miami Heat.

Banchero and Black produced most of the offense and the Hawks scored just two points in the final 6 minutes of the first quarter, and the Magic led by as many as 22 late in the first half.

The Hawks cut the gap to three and had a chance to tied the game when they turned it over with 2:36 left in the third quarter.

“They went on their own run and we weathered the storm. We didn’t let them back in the game from that point on,” Anthony said. “We got stops, we pushed the pace and we held a really good offensive team to 90 points.”

Anthony, who averaged 9.4 points in an injury-plagued season, made 10-of-17 shots including 4 -of-9 3-pointers.

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Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) goes to the basket for a shot against Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black, right, during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Atlanta Hawks guard Caris LeVert (3) goes past Orlando Magic guard Cory Joseph on a drive to the basket during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) shoots over Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner (22) during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) blocks a shot attempt by Atlanta Hawks guard Terance Mann (14) during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) is fouled by Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner (22) on a drive to the basket during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Atlanta Hawks head coach Quinn Snyder questions a ruling by officials during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Orlando Magic, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley shouts to his players during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) attempts a shot as he goes between Orlando Magic guard Gary Harris (14) and guard Anthony Black (0) during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black (0) passes the ball in front of Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero celebrates after making a shot and drawing a foul during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game against the Atlanta Hawks, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero, right, is fouled by Atlanta Hawks guard Caris LeVert, left, as he goes up for a shot during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) celebrates after teammate forward Franz Wagner made a shot against the Atlanta Hawks during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) and Atlanta Hawks forward Dominick Barlow (0) go after a rebound during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament basketball game, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Four House Democratic lawmakers have traveled to El Salvador to call attention to the plight of a man the Trump administration deported to a Salvadoran prison and has refused to help return — even after the Supreme Court ruled that it was the government's duty to do so.

Reps. Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, Maxine Dexter of Oregon, Maxwell Frost of Florida and Robert Garcia of California arrived in the Central American nation on Sunday to investigate the condition of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who had lived in the United States for more than a decade. The Trump administration deported him, a move that administration officials have said in court filings was erroneous.

But despite a Supreme Court ordering the Trump administration to help facilitate Abrego Garcia's return, the administration has said it has no power to bring him back, a choice being scrutinized by federal courts as potentially in violation of judicial rulings.

“To see the Trump administration so blatantly and egregiously defy the Supreme Court and have no regard for due process is extremely alarming to me,” Ansari said in an interview. “Even with all of the illegal actions we’ve seen over the last couple of months, I think this is the one that terrifies me the most when it comes to the future of our democracy.”

The quartet’s trip comes after Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland traveled to El Salvador last week and met Abrego Garcia and Salvadoran officials. Abrego Garcia had lived in Maryland with his wife and three children, who are American citizens, before he was deported on March 15.

Abrego Garcia's protected legal status prohibited him from being deported to El Salvador. He was deported on one of three planes filled with alleged migrant gang members.

Garcia said he and Frost sent a letter last week to House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., requesting that an official delegation go to El Salvador to investigate Abrego Garcia's condition and push for his return, but received no response. Ansari said more Democrats would be traveling to El Salvador in the coming days and weeks.

“Those of us in the House who are here greatly admire and support what Sen. Van Hollen did,” Garcia said. Of Abrego Garcia, he said, “His family knew that he was safe, but he’s not home, and so we’ve got to continue the pressure, and we’ve got to ensure that the rule of law in the United States is allowed.”

Justice Department lawyers said in court last week that they have no power to advance Abrego Garcia’s return because he is in a foreign country’s custody. Administration officials also claimed in public comments that Abrego Garcia was engaged in human trafficking and terrorism and therefore correctly deported. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that if Abrego Garcia were to return to the U.S., “he would immediately be deported again.”

Van Hollen unsuccessfully lobbied the Salvadoran government for Abrego Garcia's return. He told NBC's “Meet the Press” on Sunday that the United States is facing a “constitutional crisis” if the Trump administration does not follow the Supreme Court's order to push to bring Abrego Garcia back.

It's a warning Democrats are increasingly amplifying. Rather than debate President Donald Trump's hardline immigration policy or the merits of the administration's invocation of national security to carry out deportations, Democratic lawmakers are zeroing in on the issue of due process, with some noting that the Supreme Court and lower court federal judges found Abrego Garcia was deported without a proper hearing.

“The government’s argument, moreover, implies that it could deport and incarcerate any person, including U. S. citizens, without legal consequence, so long as it does so before a court can intervene,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in the court’s ruling in Abrego Garcia's case.

Said Garcia: “They’re trying to demonize him, and we’re not here to defend him. He deserves due process, and everyone deserves due process. ... What he did or may have done, that has to be decided by a judge.”

Several House Republicans have visited El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, the prison where Abergo Garcia is being held, and lauded the facility for what they view as El Salvador's tough-on-crime policies. Republican senators and governors have defended Abrego Garcia's detention as part of a broader crackdown on illegal immigration. But at least one Republican senator called the administration's deportation of Abrego Garcia a mistake.

“The administration won’t admit it. But this was a screw-up,” said Sen. John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, on NBC's “Meet the Press.”

During a meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office, Trump remarked that “homegrown” lawbreakers should be deported to prisons in the Central American country and urged Bukele to “build about five more places” like the notorious penitentiary where Abrego Garcia is now held.

Congressional Republicans have so far shown little interest in negotiating the dispute between the president and the judiciary. Democrats, who are in the minority in both chambers of Congress, have little leverage to pressure the White House. But Abrego Garcia's case has become both an alarming and galvanizing case inside the party.

Democrats "have the power to draw attention to this issue, to keep the pressure up," Ansari said. "That’s why you know some of us are going, and so many members will be going. Because this is about the future of our democracy and the future of due process as American citizens.”

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., is welcomed by supporters upon his arrival from meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in El Salvador, at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Va., Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., center, accompanied by Cesar Abrego Garcia, from left, Cecilia Garcia and Jennifer Vasquez Sura, speaks during a news conference upon his arrival from meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia in El Salvador, at Washington Dulles International Airport, in Chantilly, Va., Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)