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Cohen: Magic Eye Sweep, 8-0 Start to Playoffs
By Josh Cohen
May 9, 2010
ATLANTA -- Seven down, nine to go.
That is the message around the Orlando Magic locker room as they prepare for Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday at 8 p.m. ET.
The ultimate goal is to claim 16 total victories in the postseason and, as a result, hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
The Magic have shown throughout the playoffs to be very capable of accomplishing this aspiration. They are a franchise-best 7-0 to start the postseason, have captured 13 straight victories dating back to the regular season and have been relentless in their quest to prove they are the best team in the NBA.
“We need to take it game by game and execute our gameplan,” said Matt Barnes, who has been Orlando’s key defensive force against the opposition’s top scorers.
The Magic became the fourth team in NBA history to win two or more games by 30 or more in the same series with a 43-point annihilation in Game 1 and 30-point obliteration in Game 3 against the Hawks.
Orlando is looking to become just the third team since the First Round went from a best-of-five to a best-of-seven in 2003 to sweep the first two rounds in a season. Stan Van Gundy’s 2005 Miami Heat and the 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers are the only other teams to achieve this feat.
The Magic have limited the Bobcats and Hawks to less than 100 points in the first seven games. It was expected against Charlotte (28th ranked in the league in team scoring during the regular season), but against Atlanta, it’s pretty extraordinary.
The Hawks averaged nearly 102 points per game during the regular season – 13th in the NBA – but against Orlando in this series have been held under 80 points twice. Joe Johnson is 12-of-42 from the field in this series and finished with just eight points in Game 3.
"Embarrassing," Johnson said. "Guys look to me for guidance. When I'm playing like that, it's almost impossible for us to win."
"He's getting shots that he will normally make,” Stan Van Gundy said. “Sometimes, you get lucky. We're going hard at it, but I don't think it's anything we're doing."
If the Magic win on Monday, they will earn some rest before clashing with either the Cleveland Cavaliers or Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. Currently, the Cavs and C’s are tied 2-2. If Cleveland pulls it out, on one hand, Orlando will fly out to Ohio for Games 1 and 2. If Boston wins, on the other hand, the Magic will open up the series at Amway Arena.
By Josh Cohen
May 9, 2010
ATLANTA -- Seven down, nine to go.
That is the message around the Orlando Magic locker room as they prepare for Game 4 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday at 8 p.m. ET.
The ultimate goal is to claim 16 total victories in the postseason and, as a result, hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
The Magic have shown throughout the playoffs to be very capable of accomplishing this aspiration. They are a franchise-best 7-0 to start the postseason, have captured 13 straight victories dating back to the regular season and have been relentless in their quest to prove they are the best team in the NBA.
“We need to take it game by game and execute our gameplan,” said Matt Barnes, who has been Orlando’s key defensive force against the opposition’s top scorers.
The Magic became the fourth team in NBA history to win two or more games by 30 or more in the same series with a 43-point annihilation in Game 1 and 30-point obliteration in Game 3 against the Hawks.
Orlando is looking to become just the third team since the First Round went from a best-of-five to a best-of-seven in 2003 to sweep the first two rounds in a season. Stan Van Gundy’s 2005 Miami Heat and the 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers are the only other teams to achieve this feat.
The Magic have limited the Bobcats and Hawks to less than 100 points in the first seven games. It was expected against Charlotte (28th ranked in the league in team scoring during the regular season), but against Atlanta, it’s pretty extraordinary.
The Hawks averaged nearly 102 points per game during the regular season – 13th in the NBA – but against Orlando in this series have been held under 80 points twice. Joe Johnson is 12-of-42 from the field in this series and finished with just eight points in Game 3.
"Embarrassing," Johnson said. "Guys look to me for guidance. When I'm playing like that, it's almost impossible for us to win."
"He's getting shots that he will normally make,” Stan Van Gundy said. “Sometimes, you get lucky. We're going hard at it, but I don't think it's anything we're doing."
If the Magic win on Monday, they will earn some rest before clashing with either the Cleveland Cavaliers or Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals. Currently, the Cavs and C’s are tied 2-2. If Cleveland pulls it out, on one hand, Orlando will fly out to Ohio for Games 1 and 2. If Boston wins, on the other hand, the Magic will open up the series at Amway Arena.
