The Orlando Magic are ranked 22nd offensively and third defensively from their regular season stats and tonight its clear to see why - but not in terms of offensive stats. The Magic defense limited all-star franchise shooting guard Donovan Mitchell to just 13 points as the Magic defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 83-121 and made it 2-1 to the Cavaliers in the series.
2022 first-round pick, Paolo Banchero, scored 31 points as Nick Anderson's team ran riot on home court. A ten-point lead after the first quarter was followed by by a sixteen point lead in the second and they didn't look back from that point onwards.
Cleveland looked to the bench in the third quarter but couldn't find the answer as they had converted just three out of 21 from three-point range.
By the time the fourth quarter began the score was 61-96 and the Cavaliers looked dead on their feet. The Orlando Magic, who had averaged just 84 points in the first two games, had come away with a 83-121 statement victory. The Magic ended the game shooting 51.5% from the field, while the Cavs only managed 39%.
The Magic will be looking to build on this huge win as they face off against the Cavaliers once again on Saturday in Florida.
Story of the Game:
Q1: Taking home court for the first time in the series, the Orlando Magic got off to a shaky start as they went 0/8 from the field in the first five minutes of play; with the Cavaliers taking an early 6-0 advantage.
However, with an and-one from Franz Wagner, the Magic began to find their feet. The Florida-based team had the third-best home court record in the regular season this year and a three minute 13-0 scoring run saw them gain a ten-point lead, with the score 21-31 at the end of the first quarter. The Magic have never come back from an 0-2 deficit in the play-offs in their franchise's history but this was an excellent start.
Q2: Everything seemed to be going the way of the Magic. After a timeout called with nine minutes remaining in the second, JB Bickerstaff urged his players to raise the level of intensity; but this was to no avail. A number of three pointers from Jalen Suggs, Paolo Banchero and Jonathan Isaac saw the Magic extend their advantage. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland have averaged 27 and 18 points in the regular season but with the pair scoring nine and five points respectively it was clear as to why the Cavaliers were trailing in this game. A seven point run at the end of the quarter was a positive for the Cavs, but they still trailed by 16 at half time with the score 45-61.
Q3: With a 16-point deficit to make up it would be a monumental challenge for the Cavaliers to get back into this game and this proved to be the case as the Magic continued their scoring. Many had seen Jalen Suggs come off injured in the first half of game two and assumed his chances of returning during the series were over. However, the former Highschool quarterback showed his grit and resilience and by the end of the third quarter he had scored 24pts. The quarter ended with the Magic taking an incredible 35pt lead, with the score at 61-96.
Q4: By this point the game was far beyond the Cavs, with Darius Garland the only starter remaining from JB Bickerstaff's team. In the first two games of the series, the Orlando Magic bench contributed only 19 points. However, tonight a massive 46 points came from the back-ups as opposed to 36 points from the Cavs. However the starters let Cleveland down, with Jarrett Allen leading the scoring (starters, as LeVert had 15 from the bench) with just 15 points. After the Magic extended to a 43pt lead with four minutes left in Q4, the game concluded with the score at 83-121.
Player of the Match: Paolo Banchero
With 39 points, 14 rebounds and five assists the Cavaliers couldn't handle Paolo Banchero as he dominated the proceedings. His physicality and presence in the paint allowed for a free-flowing and free-scoring performance.
