ORLANDO, Fla. — In an intense showdown Monday night, Desmond Bane led the charge with 22 points as the Orlando Magic secured a 94-88 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Franz Wagner contributed 19 points over three quarters, as the Magic moved to a commanding 3-1 lead in their series, leaving the Eastern Conference’s top seed teetering on the edge of elimination.

The series continues with Game 5 scheduled for Wednesday night in Detroit.

Orlando is poised to make history by becoming only the seventh No. 8 seed to topple a No. 1 seed in a playoff series. Achieving this feat has only occurred four times since the playoffs adopted a best-of-seven format for all rounds in 2003.

Paolo Banchero added 18 points for Orlando, albeit with a challenging shooting night, going 4 for 18 from the field. Despite a shooting percentage of just 32.6%, with Jalen Suggs hitting only 1 of his 13 attempts and 1 of 11 from beyond the arc, the Magic found success through careful ball management.

By limiting their turnovers to just 12, compared to Detroit’s 20, Orlando managed to overcome their shooting difficulties and secure the crucial win.

Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 25 points and Tobias Harris had 20.

Wagner left with 1:34 left in the third quarter due to right calf soreness.

Jamal Cain replaced Wagner and electrified the crowd with a driving dunk over Caris LeVert early in the fourth quarter. He also had a one-handed tip-in dunk that made it 87-85 with 4:55 to go.

Suggs missed his first eight shots before nailing a 3-pointer from the corner for an 85-80 lead. But Ausar Thompson’s layup tied it before Cain’s putback.

With former Grizzlies teammates Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. cheering him on courtside, Bane banked in a 3-pointer to extend Orlando’s lead to 92-86 with 1:16 remaining.

The 45-win Magic haven’t won a playoff series since 2010, when they lost in the Eastern Conference finals. The 37-year-old franchise has never won an NBA title.

The Pistons, who won 60 games in the regular season, have an even longer series drought. They haven’t advanced to the second round since losing in the East finals in 2008

The teams traded double-digit leads in the first half and the Magic led 54-52 going into the third quarter.

Riding a wave of energy from a frenzied, blue-clad crowd, the Magic scored the first eight points and led 19-7 before missing 13 straight shots during a 20-5 run by Detroit.

The Pistons had a 40-30 lead midway through the second.

The Magic improved to 8-1 at home in the playoffs over the past three seasons.

WARNING: GRAPHIC DETAILS

Evidence of blood on Nancy Guthrie’s front porch indicates that a lone kidnapper may have taken her from her residence, as interpreted by a former FBI profiler.

“If there’s no blood spatter pattern inside the house, it suggests the confrontation occurred at the doorway or just outside, where she likely resisted or refused to comply,” explained retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent Jim Clemente to Fox News Digital on Monday.

“This is probably where she was attacked, possibly hit in the face. She likely collapsed, inhaled blood, and then coughed it up, leaving bloodstains in the same area.”

Blood droplets were visible on the porch of Nancy Guthrie’s Tucson, Arizona home on February 3, 2026. Guthrie was last seen the previous Saturday night. (Photo by Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

Guthrie is the 84-year-old mother of “Today” co-host Savannah Guthrie. She had lived in her home in Tucson’s Catalina Foothills neighborhood for decades before vanishing under suspicious circumstances on Feb. 1.

Sources with knowledge of the case previously told Fox News Digital there were no signs of a struggle inside. A masked intruder appeared on doorbell camera video taken at Guthrie’s front porch, and her back door was found propped open. Authorities have said they have not ruled out the possibility that multiple people could have been involved in her suspected kidnapping.

Red droplets appear on the front porch of Nancy Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 3, 2026. Guthrie was last seen on Saturday night. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

Clemente said he believes her abductor then carried her away with her face up, which limited additional blood spatter. Video taken after local authorities released the crime scene shows a concentration of blood drops near the mat at her front door. The trail grows thin and ends where her front walkway meets the edge of the driveway.

“It rules out more than one person because if two people had control of her as they were leaving the house she would never have fallen to the ground,” he said. “They would have been in control of her body and prevented her from resisting and fighting and falling after she was struck in the face.”

Red droplets appear on the concrete walkway leading to Nancy Guthrie’s home in Tucson, Ariz., on Feb. 3, 2026. Guthrie was last seen on Saturday night. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

She likely had her face down near the front door where images show the most blood, he said.

“The larger droplets are low-velocity blood spatter that fell directly out of her mouth,” he said. “Her face was facing downward when she coughed up the medium velocity small droplets, and it was within inches of the ground facing straight down.”

There’s no indication of “cast off” blood spatter, he said, which appears when blood is flung off of a moving object.

Savannah Guthrie stands beside her mother Nancy Guthrie in a photo taken on June 15, 2023. (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)

“The lack of directionality of the blood splatter says that those drops fell straight down, and she wasn’t moving fast,” he said. “So there is a contradiction in the evidence. I believe this was caused by the fact that she was carried from that first location to the car with her face up so only a minimum amount of blood was deposited on the walkway.”

He said it doesn’t look like she was dragged and believes she had been struck in the face with a fist or possibly the butt of the suspect’s handgun.

Nancy Guthrie and Savannah Guthrie pose together in a photo provided by NBC. (NBC)

“This was not done very quickly because if it had been, the blood should’ve had a tail moving the direction that she was traveling,” he said.

Dr. Michael Baden, a famed forensic pathologist, previously told Fox News Digital he suspected the blood drops came from Guthrie’s hands or face.

“The nature of the blood spots with little pale centers or donut shapes are typical for drops that come from the nose or mouth, because they’re mixed with air,” he said in February.

“These are not innocent droplets,” he added. “From the shape, number of droplets and the place of the droplets outside the house on the porch, they are entirely consistent and indicative of occurring during an abduction.” 

Anyone with information is asked to dial 1-800-CALL-FBI. There is a combined reward of more than $1.2 million for information that cracks the case.

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Megan Thee Stallion has announced her departure from the groundbreaking role as the first female Zidler in “Moulin Rouge! The Musical,” just a month after her Broadway debut.

‘Hotties, my last performance as Zidler in @moulinrougebway will be May 1,’ the 31-year-old hip-hop star – who boasts 78.7 million social media followers – wrote on Monday.

The rapper expressed her gratitude for the opportunity, saying, “Being part of the Moulin Rouge family has been an incredible honor. I’ve met so many amazing people in this theater. The hard work, dedication, stamina, and effort everyone puts into this production is truly admirable.”

She continued, “I am deeply thankful to the cast and crew for making this experience so special. To all the Hotties who came or planned to come out, thank you for your support on this amazing journey. I love you all! Until we meet again.”

Originally, Megan was set to grace the stage at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in Midtown Manhattan until May 17.

The three-time Grammy winner had hinted at her impending departure last Saturday, when fan-captured footage showed her becoming emotional and tearing up during the curtain call.

Megan Thee Stallion announced she quit her historic role as the first-ever female Zidler in Moulin Rouge! The Musical just one month into making her Broadway debut (pictured April 4)

It was the day after Stallion confirmed that she ended her nine-month relationship with ‘cheating’ Dallas Mavericks shooting guard Klay Thompson when he got ‘cold feet’ after ‘playing house’ and introducing her to his ‘whole family.’

‘Holding you down through all your horrible mood swings and treatment towards me during your basketball season, now you don’t know if you can be “monogamous?”‘ the Lover Girl rapper blasted via Instagram story.

‘Bi*** I need a real break [from dating] after this one.’

Stallion also told the Daily Mail in a statement: ‘I’ve made the decision to end my relationship with Klay. Trust, fidelity and respect are non-negotiable for me in a relationship, and when those values are compromised, there’s no real path forward.

‘I’m taking this time to prioritize myself and move ahead with peace and clarity.’

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins actress had also suffered ‘extreme exhaustion, dehydration, vasoconstriction and low metabolic levels’ in the middle of the March 31 play and was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

‘Last night was a real wake-up call for me. I’ve been pushing myself past my limits lately, running on empty, and my body finally said enough,’ Stallion wrote of her health scare.

‘It honestly scared me. I thought I was gonna faint on stage, I really tried to push through my performance but I just couldn’t. Hotties I wanna be real with y’all because you mean everything to me and I hate letting y’all down. I just need one day to rest, reset, and take care of myself the way I should have been.’

The native Texan previously romanced rappers Moneybagg Yo, DaBaby, Tory Lanez, retired NBA star Michael Beasley, music producer Pardison ‘Pardi’ Fontaine and Sydney Kings small forward Torrey Craig. 

‘Hotties, my last performance as Zidler in @moulinrougebway will be May 1,’ the 31-year-old hip-hop star wrote on Monday. ‘It’s been such an honor to be part of thee Moulin Rouge family and I’ve met so many amazing people in this theater!’

She continued: ‘Y’all work so hard and I have so much respect for the dedication, the stamina, the work ethic, the time and the effort y’all put into the work! ‘I’m so grateful for the cast and crew that made this experience so meaningful’ (pictured March 24)

Stallion (born Megan Pete) was originally scheduled to perform at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in Midtown Manhattan until May 17

The three-time Grammy winner hinted the end was near last Saturday when she broke down in tears during the curtain call as seen in fan-captured footage 

It was the day after Stallion confirmed that she ended her nine-month relationship with ‘cheating’ Dallas Mavericks shooting guard Klay Thompson when he got ‘cold feet’ after ‘playing house’ and introducing her to his ‘whole family’ (pictured July 16) 

‘Holding you down through all your horrible mood swings and treatment towards me during your basketball season, now you don’t know if you can be “monogamous?”‘ the Lover Girl rapper blasted via Instagram story. ‘Bi*** I need a real break [from dating] after this one’

Stallion had also suffered ‘extreme exhaustion, dehydration, vasoconstriction and low metabolic levels’ in the middle of the March 31 play and was transported to a local hospital for treatment (pictured April 4)

‘Last night was a real wake-up call for me. I’ve been pushing myself past my limits lately, running on empty, and my body finally said enough,’ the native Texan wrote of her health scare. ‘It honestly scared me. I thought I was gonna faint on stage, I really tried to push through my performance but I just couldn’t’

Stallion – who pulls 25.6 million monthly listeners on Spotify – has sold over 10.5 million records worldwide since her Hot Girl Summer debut in 2019.

The Roommates actress is also every bit the influencer with paid partnerships for brands like Cheetos, NYX Professional Makeup and Popeyes as well as her own liquor brand Chicas Divertidas Tequila.

In 2021, Stallion earned a degree in health administration from Texas Southern University, and she said she planned on eventually opening assisted living facilities.

One of the key players for the “Muss Bus” is staying on board.

Alijah Arenas, the promising freshman guard from USC, has decided to return for another year with the Trojans. This decision comes after he withdrew from consideration for the NBA draft, as confirmed by a source familiar with the matter to the California Post on Monday.

The Los Angeles Times initially broke the news.

With Arenas’ return, USC coach Eric Musselman now has the strongest roster he has had in his three years with the Trojans. This development is likely to boost enthusiasm and support for the team, affectionately known as the “Muss Bus.”

Arenas will be playing alongside Rodney Rice, the top scorer who had a limited season last year due to a shoulder injury, and forward Jacob Cofie. The team also includes transfers Eric Reibe, K.J. Lewis, and Jalen Cox, as well as highly-rated freshmen Christian Collins and 7-foot twins Adonis and Darius Ratliff.

After surviving a harrowing Tesla Cybertruck crash last spring, Arenas suffered a further setback when he suffered a knee injury during summer workouts. Making his collegiate debut in late January, the 6-foot-6 wing player immediately flashed his talent with silky moves and bursts of scoring.

Arenas started 13 of 14 games, averaging 14.1 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists. He earned Big Ten Conference freshman-of-the-week honors after scoring a career-high 29 points against Indiana and 24 points against Penn State in early February.

Further showing his star potential, Arenas led the Trojans in scoring in their first two games after teammate Chad Baker-Mazara was dismissed from the team.

But there were also signs that Arenas might need further seasoning before heading to the NBA. He could be turnover-prone, made only 21.3% of his 3-pointers and was benched for the final six minutes of regulation and all but eight seconds of overtime during USC’s season-ending loss to Washington in the Big Ten Tournament.

Apparently not one to hold a grudge, Arenas will return for what the Trojans hope is an all-aboard season as they try to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time under Musselman.

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A teacher from Wisconsin has been put on administrative leave after making controversial remarks about presidential assassins that sparked outrage.

Patrick Meyer, a social studies teacher at Kaukauna High School, commented on the historical figures John Wilkes Booth, Charles Guiteau, Leon Czolgosz, and Lee Harvey Oswald, stating they would be dismayed by the failed attempts on a president’s life in recent times.

In a now-deleted post on X, Meyer expressed his dissatisfaction with current would-be assassins, saying, “I am not impressed with recent presidential assassins. It’s f—ing embarrassing! Booth, Guiteau, Czolgosz, Oswald must all be spinning in their graves! MAGAA (make Americans great assassins again)! Sad!” This message appeared to parody former President Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) slogan.

Following the controversy, the Kaukauna Area School District issued a statement on Monday acknowledging the situation. They confirmed that Meyer, a long-serving teacher of over two decades, has been placed on leave.

Cole Tomas Allen is shown lying face down on the floor as law enforcement detains him after a shooting incident in Washington, D.C. (@realDonaldTrump via Truth Social)

“The District has placed the employee on administrative leave and is taking additional action to review the matter in accordance with its policies and procedures,” the district wrote.

“The Kaukauna Area School District is committed to maintaining a safe and supportive learning environment for all students, families, and staff, and unequivocally rejects any conduct, expression, or behavior that may encourage, condone, or promote violence in any form,” the statement added.

The district also said that the content of the social media post “was not related to the Kaukauna Area School District, and there has been no evidence of a risk to the safety of our students and schools.”

The Justice Department charged Cole Tomas Allen in connection with the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo)

Fox News Digital reached out to the district for additional comment. Fox News Digital also reached out to Meyer for comment.

Rep. Tony Wied, R-Wisc., said on social media, “This type of disgusting rhetoric has no place in our society and does not represent our values in #WI08. It is not the example that our teachers should be setting for Northeast Wisconsin students.”

President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington, D.C. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg)

The comments came amid heightened concern over political violence following the recent shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, D.C.

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