The Orlando Magic loses Game 1 at home and breaks its 14 game winning streak
Eastern Conference Finals. A whole new ball game.
—literally.
Orlando welcomes the Boston Celtics fresh from a victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday. The Magic hadn’t played since sweeping round 2 against the Atlanta Hawks almost a week ago.
Usually when walking into the Amway arena you see a sea of white and blue, but Sunday, specks of green were everywhere.
With a team full of injuries and losing to the Magic 3-1 during the regular season, the Boston Celtics invaded the court to warm up with a sense of urgency.
But after leading the whole game and winning 92-88, the Celtics not only broke the Magic’s 14 games winning streak but put a stamp down. Win or go home never felt more real than in Game 1.
The first quarter was a game of slow shots and too many turnovers. The Celtics dominated their defense while struggling with some of the offense. Paul Pierce and Ray Allen scored 25 and 22 points respectively.
It was pretty clear by the stunned faces in the crowd that the 15-point lead in the second quarter was a bitter surprise for Magic fans. The Celtics had the ball moving back and forth and took their time not running into the superman in the paint by utilizing jump shots.
On the blue end, the combination of too much free time and lack of motivation made the Magic look sloppy and not at all interested in another sweep.
Dwight Howard had one field goal and finished with 13 points, 3/10 shooting, and 12 rebounds. Vince Carter scored 23 points while Jameer Nelson scored 20.
“The biggest problem on the offensive end clearly was the turnovers,” Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy said. “We said it going in. It was what did Cleveland in the last series against them. We were not very efficient.”
There were 18 total turnovers but to the delight of the crowd of white and blue shirts, the Magic, which never led, came back kicking in the fourth quarter with a jumper by Nelson to close the gap to only three points after trailing behind by 20 points.
A quick play between Howard and Nelson and the superman was back, dunking the ball with 26 seconds left on the buzzer. It wasn’t enough to win but it was enough to show that they want their winning streak back.
“I think it was a wake-up call that we really needed,” Vince Carter said about the loss.
Van Gundy agrees and knows the challenge ahead.
“It’s not going to be easy,” Van Gundy said “Nothing will come easy in this series”.
This was the fewest points scored by the Magic this postseason and the lowest field goal and assist-turnover percentage ratio.
As for the Celtics, after sending Lebron James and the Cavaliers packing on Thursday, Sunday was just another boost to their game strategy and the yellow brick road to the Eastern Conference title.
“As a veteran team everybody was ready for the playoffs” Celtic’s Ray Allen said “We got here and had the ground running”.
Game 2 is this Tuesday in Orlando.
Tonight’s stats show…
Magic Celtics
* 10 assists 21 assists
*18 turnovers 14 Turnovers
*6 steals 8 steals
*8 blocks 5 Blocks
* Never lead lead by 20 points
Fernanda Barros reporting for West Orlando News Online.
