Quick Recap: Magic – 101 Cavaliers – 95

AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

Orlando played a very solid opening quarter – they shot 12-of-20 from the field, allowed the Cavs to shoot just 8-of-21 and ended the quarter on a 6-0 run giving them a 25-18 lead. The second quarter was back-and-forth. Cleveland cut the Magic lead to three early in the period only to see the Magic push the lead to 11, the largest lead of the game, with a 10-2 run. Some poor decisions by the Magic led to turnovers and they allowed the Cavs to cut the lead back to six, 49-43, at the half. After being outscored by Howard 11-2 in the first quarter, Shaq answered by outscoring Howard 11-2 in the second quarter. LeBron James led all scorers with 21 points in the first half.

In the third quarter, things really shifted in the Cavs’ favor. Newly acquired Antawn Jamison scored the first eight points of the period and by the 7:12 mark, Cleveland had a seven-point lead. The Magic went on 8-1 spurt and quickly tied the game again. Orlando took the lead on a Mickael Pietrus three-pointer with 1:05 to go in the quarter but had a messy next possession and saw Cleveland take a 75-74 lead into the final quarter. The Cavs scored 32 points in the period on 11-of-18 shooting.

In the fourth quarter, the Magic took some poor shots and the Cavaliers capitalized, building an 85-80 lead with 6:55 to go. That’s when Vince Carter reentered the game for J.J. Redick and sparked the Magic. Carter got the ball and immediately went to the basket, drawing a foul. He hit both free throws. After LeBron James was called for traveling, Carter stormed in for a huge slam dunk, bringing the crowd at Amway to their feet. After consecutive misses by James, Jameer Nelson hit a 19-foot jumper that gave the Magic an 86-85 lead. A hook shot attempt by O’Neal was no good and Jameer Nelson made a three-pointer. The Magic built a 96-88 lead after Jameer Nelson drilled another three-pointer only to see the Cavs cut it back to four with 58.5 second to play. Carter again drove to the basket but this time found wide open Rashard Lewis, who nailed a three-pointer, essentially ending the game and the Magic came away with a 101-95 victory. Jameer Nelson and Vince Carter, who struggled through the first four quarters combined to score 16 fourth quarter points. LeBron James was just 1-of-5 from the field in the fourth quarter.

LeBron James had 33 points, nine rebounds and six assists to lead the Cavs. Shaquille O’Neal had a good game – 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting and Antawn Jamison made up for his 0-of-12 debut on Friday by scoring 19 points and pulling down eight boards. Dwight Howard led the Magic with 22 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks while Jameer Nelson chipped in 18 points and five assists.

(Andrew Melnick is Howard the Dunk’s lead blogger and a contributor at NFL Mocks Subscribe to his RSS feed, add him on Twitter to follow him daily and you can get the HTD app here.)