The Orlando Magic (40–22) earned a stunning 99–96 victory against the Miami Heat (43–18) on Thursday night in Miami, carried by phenomenal second half 3-point shooting to erase a 24-point deficit.
The first half was all Miami, with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade each breaking the 20-point mark for the first time since they were on the same team. Orlando could do little to stop Miami’s surging offense and finished the half down 63–45.
But late in the third quarter after falling down by 24 points Orlando began to mount a comeback, and it all came down to 3-point shooting.
The Magic finally tied the game at 82–82 with eight minutes to go off a Gilbert Arenas 3-pointer and then took the lead on the next possession.
Orlando ended up shooting an amazing 16–29 from beyond the arc, with Jason Richardson contributing six and Ryan Anderson and Arenas each contributing three.
Their reliance on outside shooting was surprising given they have one of the best centers in the league in Dwight Howard. Howard scored 14 points in 5-for-10 field goal shooting as Miami did an excellent job swarming him down low whenever he touched the ball.
The Heat were scoreless for over six minutes in the fourth quarter until Bosh made a driving layup with five minutes to go in the game, allowing Orlando to build as much as a seven-point lead.
The Heat would never regain the lead but battled down the stretch, pulling within a point with a few seconds on the clock. But the Heat were forced to foul, sending J.J. Redick to the line to give Orlando a 3-point lead going into the final seconds.
Miami had two open shot attempts on their final possession but were unable to hit them, giving Orlando their second largest comeback in franchise history.
Orlando was led by Richardson with 24 points, and Jameer Nelson scored 16. Howard added 18 rebounds to his 14 points, and Anderson and Arenas contributed big from the bench with 15 points and 11 points respectively.
James and Wade scored 29 and 28 points, respectively. Bosh was the only other Heat player to reach double-digits with 13 points, and Miami only shot 3-of-17 from beyond the arc.
The first half was all Miami, with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade each breaking the 20-point mark for the first time since they were on the same team. Orlando could do little to stop Miami’s surging offense and finished the half down 63–45.
But late in the third quarter after falling down by 24 points Orlando began to mount a comeback, and it all came down to 3-point shooting.
The Magic finally tied the game at 82–82 with eight minutes to go off a Gilbert Arenas 3-pointer and then took the lead on the next possession.
Orlando ended up shooting an amazing 16–29 from beyond the arc, with Jason Richardson contributing six and Ryan Anderson and Arenas each contributing three.
Their reliance on outside shooting was surprising given they have one of the best centers in the league in Dwight Howard. Howard scored 14 points in 5-for-10 field goal shooting as Miami did an excellent job swarming him down low whenever he touched the ball.
The Heat were scoreless for over six minutes in the fourth quarter until Bosh made a driving layup with five minutes to go in the game, allowing Orlando to build as much as a seven-point lead.
The Heat would never regain the lead but battled down the stretch, pulling within a point with a few seconds on the clock. But the Heat were forced to foul, sending J.J. Redick to the line to give Orlando a 3-point lead going into the final seconds.
Miami had two open shot attempts on their final possession but were unable to hit them, giving Orlando their second largest comeback in franchise history.
Orlando was led by Richardson with 24 points, and Jameer Nelson scored 16. Howard added 18 rebounds to his 14 points, and Anderson and Arenas contributed big from the bench with 15 points and 11 points respectively.
James and Wade scored 29 and 28 points, respectively. Bosh was the only other Heat player to reach double-digits with 13 points, and Miami only shot 3-of-17 from beyond the arc.
