Magic thrive in meaningful games

Hot late-season finish lays groundwork for competing with a lot on the line

The Orlando Magic covered the final 31 games of the regular season with a 22-9 mark.

That push belies their final record of 42-40, which earned them the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs and a firstround matchup with the Toronto Raptors.

The postseason offers a reset, as every team starts 0-0.

Make that 1-0 for the Magic. So it should come as little surprise that the Magic fought their way back from a six-point deficit late in the game to earn a 104-101 victory against the Toronto Raptors in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series on Saturday night.

After all, the Magic have become accustomed to playing in games that count.

They compete until the end. “I think, to be honest, in these three, four weeks the way guys have played and like the way we played tonight, we played well, but we’ve played a lot of games like that lately,” Magic Clifford said.

They never panicked after watching the Raptors outscore them 20-2 over a 6 minute, 30-second stretch that covered parts of the second and third quarters.

The Magic trailed by six late in the third. When the clock hit the 10:44 mark of the fourth quarter, they were up 79-76 after a layup by Toronto native Khem Birch.

Another rally ensued after Magic fell behind by six.

“We’re not a team that gives up,” point guard D.J. Augustin said.

The Magic have now won straight and 12 of their past 14. coach Steve the five

Magic bench delivers

Terrence Ross didn’t have his usual stellar long-distance shooting night, going 2-for-11 and 1-for-5 from 3-point range.

But he still managed to score 10 points, and was 5-for-5 from the free-throw line. He also had six rebounds.

Michael Carter-Williams scored five of his 10 points in the fourth quarter, and also collected five rebounds.

Birch finished with and seven rebounds.

Overall, the Magic bench finished with a 31-26 scoring edge over the Raptors’ bench.

Ross, Carter-Williams, six points Birch and Wes Iwundu also combined for 18 rebounds and six steals.

Free-throw importance

While the Magic struggled through an 18-point third quarter, their free-throw shooting helped keep them afloat and was key in preventing the Raptors from pulling away.

The Magic were 7-for-8 to help offset their 5-for-18 shooting from the field.

Overall, the Magic outscored the Raptors by nine from the foul line, going 18-for-20 to Toronto’s 9-for-14 effort.