Magic beat Lakers for Game 3 victory in NBA Finals
The Orlando Magic got their offense going to record-setting levels and turned up their defense on Kobe Bryant over the final three quarters.
It turned out to be a winning combination.
Three starters scored at least 20 points and the host Magic shot 62.5% from the field as they held off the Los Angeles Lakers for a 108-104 victory in Game 3 of the NBA Finals on this day in 2009.
Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis each scored 21 points, while Rafer Alston finished with 20 points and Hedo Turkoglu had 18 for the Magic, who had been held under 100 points in Games 1 and 2. Howard, Lewis, Alston and Turkoglu combined to go 28 of 44 from the field (63.6%).
Reserve forward Mickael Pietrus added 18 points for Orlando, which shot 75% in the first quarter (12 of 16), than an NBA record for the first quarter.
San Antonio shot 86.7% in the first quarter of Game 3 in the 2014 Finals.
Bryant, meanwhile, posted a game-high 31 points. He was on pace for much more after torching the Magic for 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting in the first quarter. In fact, he nearly outscored the Magic (21) by himself.
Limiting Bryant to 17 points on 4-of-15 shooting over the final three quarters certainly played a role in Orlando’s victory.
As did Alston and Pietrus. Alston was the catalyst for the Magic early, scoring 11 points in the first quarter on perfect shooting (4-for-4 FGs, 2-2 FTs).
Pietrus came up with a huge play when he converted a steal into two free throws that put the Magic ahead 106-102 with 28.7 seconds left.
The Lakers then missed four 3-point attempts in a 22-second span before Bryant’s rebound basket with :00.5 seconds remaining made it 106-104.
The victory, which pulled Orlando within 2-1 in the best-of-7 series, turned out to be bittersweet. It stands as the franchise’s only win in the Finals.