Unlike Cavaliers, Magic sticking to what works best

By Rob Peterson, NBA.com
Posted May 27 2009 8:01AM

ORLANDO -- Throughout this postseason, the Orlando Magic have often been on the wrong side of history.

They gave away home court in Game 1 and faced a 2-1 deficit in the first round against Philadelphia. They heard about (and read about) the stats how the Celtics' franchise had an all-time record of 32-0 when holding 3-2 series leads. Then, they stared down a Game 7 in Boston, a veritable graveyard of opponents' postseason hopes and dreams.

But after Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, Orlando finally has history on its side.

Sure, it took them an extra five minutes of coaxing, cajoling and courting, but with a thrilling 116-114 overtime win, the Magic now have a 3-1 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers and are one game away from their first NBA Finals apperance since 1995.

(Miss the action? Catch the replay of Game 4 at Noon ET on NBA TV.)

Just how big is the hole that the Magic have put the Cavaliers in?

Not only does Cleveland need to win three consecutive games against a team they have only beaten three times in the last 11 regular season and postseason meetings, but only eight teams in NBA history have fought their way back from a 3-1 series deficit. In 2006, the Suns shocked the Lakers in the first round, but no team has scratched, clawed or fought their way back from 3-1 in a conference finals since the Larry Bird-led Celtics defeated the Julius Erving-led Philadelphia 76ers in 1981.

Daunting, yes. Impossible, no. That's why Magic coach Stan Van Gundy isn't ready to size himself up for an Eastern Conference championship t-shirt just yet.

"This one will be a lot harder to get," Van Gundy said.

But if this series holds to form, the Magic will get it. And they'll get it for the simple reason that they have stayed truer to who they are throughout the first four games of the series for longer stretches than the Cavs have.

The Magic know who they are: "We run, move the ball and defend," Dwight Howard said after Game 3. No two plays epitomized Howard's description than two of the 17 3-point shots they made on Tuesday, one near the beginning of the fourth quarter and one at the end.

Thanks to Rafer Alston and his 15 third-quarter points, the Magic whittled an eight-point halftime deficit to one to start the fourth quarter. One minute into the fourth, the Magic managed to take their first lead since late in the second quarter on some of the prettiest and crispest ball movement you will ever see.

It started, as it usually does, with Howard taking an entry pass in the post. He passed out of a double-team to the strong-side corner to Rashard Lewis. Lewis whipped a pass to the wing to Courtney Lee, who sent a laser to Alston on the other wing. Alston found super-sub Mickael Pietrus alone on the weakside corner for a wide-open, nothing-but-net 3-pointer that gave the Magic an 81-79 advantage.

The Cavaliers, despite their five fourth quarter turnovers, managed to take a 98-97 lead with 1:05 left when LeBron James made the second of two free throws.

When Orlando responded to the Cavs' lead with misses on two rushed 3-pointers (also something that's part of Orlando DNA), the Magic were lucky to have the Cavs' Delonte West knock a loose ball out of bounds with 6.4 seconds left.

Van Gundy called a 20-second timeout and again, the Magic's Really Big Three of Howard, Lewis and Turkoglu managed to make the Cavaliers pay.

With Turkoglu inbounding the ball, Lewis came to the corner with Ben Wallace on him. Howard managed not only to screen his man (Anderson Varejao), but picked off Wallace as well, leaving Lewis wide open for a three.

"I didn't really know who to screen," Howard said. "Usually they switch the four and five pick-and-roll toward the ends of games. And I think Ben had a head start, so I tried to hit him before he got a chance to close out to Rashard. And then Rashard just hit the shot."

Once again, the Cavs couldn't defend an inbounds play. Before Lewis hit his game-winning 3-pointer in Game 1, TNT cameras caught James pleading with his teammates to just get one stop. Tonight's repeat had James shaking his head after the game.

If you have watched the Cavaliers all season, this is not the Cavaliers team you've watched. They haven't defended well when it counts. They haven't moved the ball to get easy buckets. And throughout the second half of Game 4, they went to isolation plays instead of making the Magic work on defense.

"We just need one stop," James said, "and we haven't gotten one stop to win a game yet."

Therein lies the difference from being up 3-1 and down 3-1. When the Magic have needed Howard, he's been there. Tonight after James sent the game into OT with two clutch free throws with 0.5 left, Howard scored 10 of the Magic's first 13 OT points.

The Cavs haven't helped James much at all this series with either their words or their deeds. Despite eight turnovers in Game 4, James was his usual brilliant self with 44 points, 12 boards and seven assists. No one else on the Cavs has been up to the standards they set thus far.

Mo Williams, who guaranteed the Cavs would win this series, had 18 points, but was only 5-for-15 from the field. Varejao only had two boards. And for the second straight game, the Pietrus outscored the Cavs' bench. Add into the mix that Howard went 7-for-9 from the free throw line and is 21-for-28 in the last two games, and the Cavs don't just have their backs to the wall, they're blindfolded and have just been asked if they have any last words.

"You move on to the next game," James said. "You try to get the game on Thursday back home and come back down here and try to get Game 6. We are looking forward to the challenge."

But quickly realizing that he's been brining it all series long, he changed pronouns as quickly as he changes direction off the dribble.

"I know I am. I'm up for the challenge," LeBron said. "I think my play, my leadership has spoken for that. So I will be ready and I think our guys will be ready also."

They had better be. Because you know the Magic will.

Here's the full article.

Chris Tiu and the First Step Towards the Philippines’ Olympic Basketball Dream

A very nice article by Sir Rick Olivares.

The color of his jersey had that familiar blue and white on it. Even when his name was announced there were the usual cheers from the crowd. Except that this wasn’t college anymore but in the international arena.

It was no longer for Ateneo de Manila but for the Philippines or “Pilipinas” as it was emblazoned in front of his game jersey.

Yet incredibly, just like the champion Blue Eagles team he just left, he has willfully subjected his talent and scoring prowess for the better of the team. Tiu was far from the leading scorer for the Smart Gilas Men’s National Basketball Team. There were others like Andy Mark Barroca, Dylan Ababou, and Chester Jarrel Giles, the team’s American reinforcement, to provide scoring punch, but his effect on the team is felt in so many other areas.

“The National Team is different from the Blue Eagles because here you’re playing with the best of the other college teams so in terms of talent and leadership, they are all “the man” on their teams,” described Tiu, the Smart Gilas’ Team Captain of his role. “They already know what to do. Here I plug in holes that I need to fill whether on or off the court.”

Tiu was a part of the 12-man squad that donned the Philippines’ colors in the recently-concluded 20th FIBA Asia Champions Cup in Jakarta, Indonesia from May 12-20, 2009 and is the lone Atenean on the squad (although Ford Arao and Ryan Buenafe are in the National Pool). The Philippines was one of the 10 countries that participating in the tournament that features club champions from all over Asia.

After having been suspended from international play by FIBA, the Philippines is back and out to regain lost glory in a sport it once dominated in Asia. The goal of the Smart Gilas program is to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics.

“Dreams do come true and it is very much doable (the Olympic dream),” said Tiu who admitted to fulfilling a boyhood dream of not only representing the country in international competition but also making the quadrennial event which is arguably the world’s biggest sports extravaganza. “We have a very good coach and we have players who can help who are coming in.”

“The pressure – well, I don’t feel it very much yet maybe because it’s not a qualifying tournament for the Olympics” said Tiu of the FIBA Champions Cup in the middle of the tournament. “But it’s still a tournament I hope that we can win. Although it’s going to be very difficult with the level of competition.”

“The pressure is different from playing for an elite university with a few thousand alumni following the team to leading a squad that you have 80-plus million who will be following it. You know there’s gong to be pressure.”

But when needed to step up, the Atenean is ready and willing such as the battle for fifth place with host Satria Muda Indonesia.

The match wasn’t without its share of drama as Indonesia bucked the loss of one of its two American imports to a disqualification foul. Rather than fold, the home team found a wellspring of points and hope in its locals who combined with its remaining American to forge overtime after being down by 10 points with a little over a minute to play.

Tiu, who was having a bad shooting day as he was not fully 100% owing to a nagging quadriceps injury, found a way to get to the free throw line where he could add points from the stripe.

The Pilipinas captain hit four free throws to keep even with the Indonesians as they sent the game into extra time and another four free throws with two crucial steals in the overtime period to seal a hard-fought 112-107 win that gave the Philippines fifth place.

“I fill in wherever the team needs me whether it’s a short pep talk or to guide my teammates or even serve as voice to our head coach (Serbian Rajko Toroman).”

In one team practice at the Blue Eagle Gym a week before the team’s departure for Jakarta, Indonesia where the Smart Gilas team was to participate in its maiden international tourney the 20th FIBA Asia Champions Challenge Cup, teammate Rey Guevarra was having difficulty with the play that Toroman designed for the team.

Tiu who was on the sidelines taking a break offered a simple sentence of advice for the Letran Knights’ slam-dunking star. “Rey, pag-cut mo tignan mo yung gwardiya kasi baka pasahan ka niya ng bola.”

Guevarra nodded and the next time the play was run, he caught the pass, faked a move inside before kicking it out to an open teammate. He gave Tiu a low-five to signify his appreciation.

After the gut-wrenching win versus Indonesia, it was Tiu’s turn to show his appreciation. As the Smart Gilas squad clasped hands center court and turned to wave to the crowd, the captain smiled and waved at the supporters at the Britama Sports Arena where the FIBA tournament. “This is the first step,” he beamed as he gave a thumbs up.

Source: Click here.

Hapee ends Pharex’s Cinderella run

Hapee Toothpaste ended Pharex's Cinderella run with an 84-81 victory plus the last semis berth in the PBL PG-Flex Linoleum Cup Tuesday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

The charities made by both Chris Tiu and Fil-Am Josh Vanlandingham in the last 11.5 seconds preserved the heroics of big man Jervy Cruz, who finished with a double-double, 19 points and 10 rebounds.

With the win, Hapee Toothpaste Complete Protectors joined six-peat campaigner Harbour Centre Batang Pier, Magnolia Purewater, and Bacchus in the Final Four.

Aside from clinching an outright semis berth, the Batang Pier also earned the right to choose its Final Four opponent. They chose the Complete Protectors, whom they defeated in three finals duels, including the last two conferences.

Though Tiu finished only with seven points, he earned accolades from his team, especially coach Gee Abanilla.

“I think Chris Tiu gave us great help but we should give credit also to other players, especially our big guys like si Jervy. Hindi pa nagagamay si Chris sa sistema pero he has a big basketball IQ,” said Abanilla.

Tiu, who practiced with the team only last Monday, also had four rebounds and the same number of assists in 28 minutes of action.

“Definitely tuloy-tuloy na ang pagbabalik ni Chris. He is committed to play until the end of the conference,” added Abanilla.

Magnolia, the other team which advanced automatically in the semis, collides with Bacchus in the other semis duel.

Pharex Generix came into the game the clear favorites, having won their fives games, including Game 1 of their quarterfinal series against the Complete Protectors, 76-61, on Saturday.

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