Cody's Blog

With yet another heart-breaking loss, the Orlando Magic loose the momentum that they had gained in game 3 and are now behind in this Finals series 3 games to 1 against the Lakers. Behind Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis, the Magic won game 3 and were looking to build off of that in this very pivotal game 4. Dwight Howard started off pretty good without even scoring! In the first quarter, Howard had 11 rebounds and 3 blocks and the Magic jumped out to a 24-20 lead. The second quarter was much like the first for the Magic, with Dwight Howard scoring 6 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 blocks and the Magic took a 49-37 lead into half-time. But, it was a totally different story to start the second half. The Lakers went on an 18-5 run, with Trevor Ariza leading the way with 13 points in the quarter and the Lakers lead was four (67-63) heading into the fourth quarter. The final stanza of this game was everything a fan could ask for! With 5:38 left in the last period, Mickael Pietrus drove the lane and converted the conventional three-point play to tie the game at 75 apiece. The Magic had a 3 point lead with around 10seconds to go. The Lakers got the ball to Derek Fischer who hit a game-tying three. Overtime! (Again?) The Lakers out scored the Magis 12-4 in OT, but the ey to the Magic’s demise was pitiful free-throw shooting. They shot just 59.5% from the line, and missed key free throws down the stretch. (An overtime loss 99-91. Are we seeing a trend here?) Now the Lakers have commanding 3-1 series lead, and the Magic must now put it into desperation mode to try and send the series back to Los Angeles.