BOSTON (AP) — Baylor Scheierman scored a career-high 30 points, Luka Garza added 27, including a key 3-pointer with 31.6 seconds left, and the Boston Celtics’ reserves defeated Orlando 113-108 on Sunday night, sending the Magic into a road play-in tournament game.
Ron Harper Jr. had a career-best 27 points for Boston, and Garza grabbed 12 rebounds.
Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 23 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, and Jalen Suggs scored 23 points.
The Magic (45-37) had won five straight and seemed ready to lock up a home game as the Eastern Conference’s No. 7 seed before the loss. They entered tied with Toronto for sixth, but fell to eighth and will face Philadelphia.
Boston sat eight of its regular rotation players, including stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Playing most of the season without Tatum, who was recovering from Achilles tendon surgery, the Celtics (56-26) turned in a better-than-expected season by earning the East’s No. 2 seed.
Wendell Carter Jr’s free throw cut Boston’s lead to 108-105 with 1:37 remaining and Suggs’ right-wing 3 tied it before Garza collected a pass off an in-bounds, turned and hit his 3-pointer.
The Celtics led 101-85 early in the final quarter before the Magic cut the deficit to five points on Banchero’s layup with just under four minutes left.
Mainly behind Harper and Scheierman, Boston’s reserves hung around early, falling behind by double digits midway into the second quarter and then rallying behind a 3-point shooting barrage (9 of 16) in the third quarter to outscore the Magic 42-20 in the period and open a 94-81 lead.
The Celtics hit four 3-pointers in a 1:48 span — two by Scheierman — during a 12-2 spurt that pulled them ahead.
Magic: Travel to No. 7 Philadelphia for a play-in game.
Celtics: Await their first-round playoff opponent.
AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA
Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero, top right, dunks next to Boston Celtics forward Ron Harper Jr., top left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)
Boston Celtics forward Luka Garza (52) defends the ball from Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner (22) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)
Boston Celtics forward Ron Harper Jr. (13) drives to the net as Orlando Magic forward Tristan da Silva (23) defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign for California governor on Sunday following sexual assault allegations that he has denied.
“I will fight the serious, false allegations that have been made — but that’s my fight, not a campaign’s,” Swalwell said in a social media post.
His announcement came as Democrats quickly abandoned him after the allegations were published Friday in the San Francisco Chronicle and later CNN that he had sexually assaulted a woman twice, including when she worked for him.
A growing number of Democrats urged the congressman both to quit the race and resign his seat in Congress. His statement made no mention of resigning from Congress. The allegations came as Swalwell became a leading contender in the race for California governor to replace outgoing Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Though Swalwell has denied the allegations, he has seemingly referenced infidelity in multiple statements.
“To my family, staff, friends, and supporters, I am deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past,” he wrote. That followed a video post on Friday where he apologized to his wife.
Over the weekend, with Swalwell's gubernatorial campaign already teetering, Democrats in Congress began to call for his resignation from the House. Some even said they would support the rare step of expelling him should he refuse to step aside.
Fellow California Reps. Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna and Sam Liccardo said Swalwell should resign, as did Reps. Teresa Leger Fernández of New Mexico and Pramila Jayapal of Washington state.
“This is not a partisan issue,” Jayapal said Sunday. “This cuts across party lines. And it is depravity of the way that women have been treated.”
Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment
It all added to the mounting political pressure on Swalwell, who has already seen his most prominent supporters, including Sen. Adam Schiff and powerful labor unions, pull their endorsements and call for his exit from the race. Rep. Jimmy Gomez, D-Calif., who helped run Swalwell’s campaign, said he was immediately ending his role.
With the House returning to session Tuesday, the question of whether to expel Swalwell could come to a head quickly. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., said Saturday that she would be filing a motion to start the process.
Expulsion votes in the House are rare and require a two-thirds majority, but there is recent precedent for taking the step. Republican George Santos of New York in 2023 became just the sixth member in House history to be ousted by colleagues for his conduct.
Huffman, Jayapal and Leger Fernández said they would vote to expel Swalwell from the House, though they said they also support expelling Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, who admitted to an affair with a former staff member who later died by suicide.
Republican Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida, who is running his own campaign for governor, said both Swalwell and Gonzales “need to go home” and that he would vote to expel them both.
Khanna also indicated support for congressional action against both lawmakers.
“So, it depends on if it’s worded in a fair way,” Khanna said. “But this shouldn’t be about politics. Anyone who abuses young girls and staffers should not be in the United States Congress."
The San Francisco Chronicle reported Friday about allegations that Swalwell sexually assaulted a woman in 2019 and 2024. The woman said she did not go to police at the time of the assaults because she was afraid she would not be believed.
The woman worked for Swalwell when the first alleged assault occurred in 2019, while the 2024 assault allegedly occurred at a charity gala, the Chronicle reported. In both cases the woman said she was too intoxicated to consent to sex.
The paper didn’t name the woman, and The Associated Press has not been able to independently verify her account and identity. Her lawyer declined to comment.
The alleged 2024 incident occurred in New York, and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said Saturday that it was investigating. That office urged anyone with knowledge to contact its special victims division.
After the allegations surfaced, Swalwell said Friday in a video on social media that he would spend the weekend with family and friends and share an update “very soon.” He is not running for reelection for his House seat.
“These allegations of sexual assault are flat false. They’re absolutely false. They did not happen, they have never happened, and I will fight them with everything that I have,” the congressman said.
Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker who remains a dominant force in California politics, said the “serious allegations” must be investigated. She said she spoke to Swalwell and suggested that be done “outside of a gubernatorial campaign.”
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York and his leadership team also called for an investigation and for Swalwell to end his campaign for governor.
Jayapal and Donalds appeared on NBC's “Meet the Press,” and Khanna was interviewed on “Fox News Sunday.”
California gubernatorial candidate Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., talks with reporters after holding a town hall meeting in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
California gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-CA appears at a town hall meeting in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
