Orlando Magic vs. Detroit Pistons (Game 3)

Not a sweep.

Trying out this new technique called "Dominance," Dwight Howard & the Orlando Magic brought some rusty Detroit Pistons to their knees tonight. If there's one thing I've learned about the NBA Playoffs this year, it's that home court advantage can make a whole universe of difference in a team's night.

The Magic stepped up its game as a team, to keep Motown under from start to finish. Furious defense and an equal turnover count (11 by both teams) contributed heavily.

Man of the hour was one Sweet Lew, who has grown over the last couple weeks to finally fill those big golden shoes we bought him in the off-season. No. 9 turned in a LeBron-esque night with 33 points, many of which were made up of morale-crushing three-pointers. Continuing along the road to greatness was the Howitzer, who added six blocks to his requisite double-double (20 pts, 12 rbs). Jameer Nelson played a superb game with 18, Dooling added a nasty 10 off the bench, and Hedo evidently remembered why we call him "Quatro," dropping another 18, which included some clutch mortar rounds when Rip Hamilton started looking hot.

It's a big win. No team who goes under 0-3 ever comes back to win a series. We've shown the Pistons we can deal with them. Still, it's just one win and it's a win at home. We're going to have to take the next game this Saturday, but more importantly, we have to win one at Auburn Hills.

As I noted in the last post, Chauncey Billups was the nightmare in Game 2. He got injured early in this contest, playing only four minutes. We can't forget what an incredible player this man is. If we let him run circles around us in Game 4, we're screwed.

The Magic shot absurdly well tonight. 53.8% of field goals went in. 45.8% of treys found their mark. We can be murderous when are shooting game is on. What worries me is that it's not going to be on all the time. The whole team played brilliantly tonight, but I hope they'll be able to keep up their intensity on the defensive end. We have to utilize our team's youth and height in the rest of this series. I trust head coach Stan Van Gundy to keep things in perspective, though. If we stay hungry in the paint and don't turn the ball over, we might just be able to send Detroit's old horse to the glue factory before long.

Final Score: Magic: 111 Pistons: 86

Orlando Magic vs. Detroit Pistons (Part Two)

Well, it's been no-go for victory in Detroit so far. That said, the fight that the Magic put up tonight in the third and fourth quarters gives me some hope that they can and will develop into a playoff-hardened team sooner or later. Player of the night was Jameer Nelson (22 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists), who hit several threes to put us back in the game midway through the third when things were looking very bad. It wasn't enough, unfortunately, to hold back 2004 Championship MVP Chauncey Billups from tearing up the court all night.

What interested me about tonight's game is the fact that it was only Billups that seemed to give us major problems. Defensive play was tighter and the team was able to draw a lot of fouls from Detroit's front court. Antonio McDyess fouled out of the game in the fourth, Rasheed Wallace came close with 5 personal fouls, and Jason Maxiell had 4.

If Stan Van Gundy has in fact worked out a way of curbing at least some of Detroit's main threats (Wallace and Rip Hamilton in particular) then hopes ought to be high for the next two games in Florida.

Orlando Magic vs. Detroit Pistons (Game 2)

Last Saturday was awful. After being almost tied up at the half (43-42 Pistons), the Magic found themselves playing some of their worst basketball of the season. The Pistons have proven that they deserve to be where they are time and time again. They play well-balanced, and more importantly, consistent basketball.

Tonight we have to get a win. As much as I'd like the believe our players are able to put last year's horror story aside, I can't imagine it's not taking it's toll on their confidence. Yes, the Pistons were still hot from their win against the Sixers last week. Yes, the Magic were well-rested. There's no use trying to explain away the situation as it stands. If we don't win tonight, it's highly unlikely we'll be able to get up from under the boot. If we can get a win in Detroit now, we'll have the home court advantage we need to win this series.

Stan Van Gundy has undoubtedly been working these guys real hard over the past two days, retooling defensive match-ups and assessing Detroit's post-season shape. More importantly, though, our five starters need to shake the intimidation factor and get angry. There's been more than a little trash talk flying around recently, and it's getting to the point where something really needs to be done to counter it. A statement has to be made against this old-guard of the East. If we come out strong and turn up the energy on this aging team, we can very well win this.

Stats from Game 1 (from Orlando Magic Blog):

Orlando:

Hedo Turkoglu 18 pts (8 of 16 FGs), 7 rebounds; Rashard Lewis 18 pts (9 of 20 FGs), 7 rebounds; Dwight Howard 12 pts (5 of 11 FGs), 8 rebounds, 3 blocks. Bench: Keyon Dooling 7 pts (1 of 5 FGs)

Detroit:
Chauncey Billups 19 pts, 7 assists; Richard "Rip" Hamilton 17 pts, 6 rebounds; Jason Maxiell 12 pts, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks; Tayshaun Prince 12 pts, 8 rebounds, 5 assists. Bench: Antonio McDyess 10 pts, 5 rebounds.

Very few people take the Magic seriously. We've yet to prove ourselves as a winning franchise and it'll take a championship to silence the critics. Here's hoping they'll play their hearts out tonight and make an example of these jokers.