Magic Learn Lesson From Historical Series Win
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May 17, 2009
BOSTON -- They said it couldn’t be done.
They said no team could go into Boston under the circumstances and win a Game 7, because it’s never happened before.
Well, it’s happened now.
The Orlando Magic stormed through the TD Banknorth Garden on Sunday and demolished the defending champion Boston Celtics, 101-82, to take Game 7 and the Eastern Conference Semifinals series.
In the process they made history, becoming the first team in the NBA to defeat Boston after it led 3-2 in a postseason series and just the fourth all-time to win a Game 7 on its home floor.
“When you look at a team that’s 32-0 when leading a series 3-2 and then you come in and win by 19 points, that’s a big win,” Magic Head Coach Stan Van Gundy said of his team’s Game 7 triumph. “I can’t say I’ve ever had one that I’ve been happier about.”
After being criticized for falling at the buzzer in Game 4 and relinquishing a huge advantage to Boston in Game 5, the Magic refused to allow the same thing to happen in the deciding contest of their Eastern Conference Semifinals series.
Instead this time when the Celtics inched within five to close out the third quarter, the Magic pushed back.
Orlando erupted for an 11-0 run to tip off the fourth and never looked in the rearview mirror.
“There have been some games when we are up big, but we stopped playing and tonight we didn’t want to learn a lesson in a loss,” Magic All-Star center Dwight Howard explained. “We stuck to the game plan and we played hard for 48 minutes.”
If there’s one thing that the Magic feel they’ve learned from taking down the reigning titleholders, it’s that they can’t let up at any point in a playoff contest.
“We know next round that we have to play hard and we have to play for a full 48 minutes,” Magic All-Star forward Rashard Lewis said of the lesson his team has learned from their series with the Celtics. “We can’t go out there and build a lead and just start going through the motions because a team can come back and beat you at anytime.”
The Magic certainly followed their newfound mantra on Sunday as Hedo Turkoglu and Mickael Pietrus kept their feet on the gas and ensured that the Magic would ride all the way to the next round.
Turkoglu exploded for 10 of his 25 points in the final frame, including a dagger trey with 3:55 left in the fourth that thwarted a potential Boston run.
Pietrus capped off a phenomenal 6-of-7 shooting night from the field by knocking down all of his attempts in the final period, finishing with nine points in the quarter and 17 overall.
“At the start of the fourth we jumped right out,” veteran point guard Anthony Johnson explained. “Turk was able to get to the basket and MP made some big shots to start off the fourth. We started playing to win, we felt we had some confidence and some momentum and we were just able to ride it out.”
It’s that type of team effort that makes Howard believe his team can not only beat Cleveland, but also advance to The Finals and claim the franchise’s first NBA title.
“I believe we can win the championship and we aren’t going to stop going after one until we get it,” the All-Star center said following his team’s Game 7 victory. We have the right team. We have the talent.”
If the Magic can bring that same effort and intensity to the rest of their postseason, anything is possible.
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