The daily digest of Twin Cities culture | Secrets of the City

Orlando Magic 107, Cleveland Cavs 106

Magic lead 1-0.

This will be pretty succinct, as I think I've already said quite enough earlier today in smugly predicting the Cavs in 5. Yes, I still think they are the vastly superior team--I could be a real jerk and call the Cavs in 6, which is what I now believe. But y'know, just maybe I don't know what I'm talking about on this particular matchup.

Instead, let me cite the comments of Charles Barkley, who bravely predicted a Magic series win, and whose words I'm suddenly more interested in hearing. Sir Charles thinks Z Ilgauskus is a terrible matchup here; too old and slow to handle Howard in the paint and to get out and guard the sharpshooting forwards Lewis and Turkoglu on the pick and roll. Six hours ago I would have dismissed that logic. Now I have to consider it.

But then I look at the stat sheet, and see that big Z was a game-best plus +12 in 32:03 of a one-point loss, and I see that Ben Wallace was minus -14 in 9:47. I think that Cleveland lost due to a toxic combination of overconfidence, rust, and a physical and psychological unfamiliarly with genuine crunchtime basketball this postseason. This certainly wasn't the Cavs' team I saw all season long. They weren't getting back in transition and consequently seemed totally unprepared for the kick-outs for treys off the fast break, preoccupied with trying to stop the guy with the ball because they didn't have the numbers to man up. On offense, they literally ran a half-dozen 4th quarter "plays" of the sort you see to end quarters and halves: LeBron held the ball until there was almost no time on the shot clock, and then heaved one up. It was pathetic. Meanwhile, whatever possessed Cavs coach Mike Brown to stick Wally Szczerbiak on Mickeal Pietrus near the end of the 3rd quarter, I hope he banishes from his system forever. Bulletin: If Szczerbiak isn't confident enough to take and make a shot--and he was 0-2 FG in 13:24--he has absolutely no business being on the court.

On the other side, kudos to Orlando, especially their big three of Howard, who kept them in it early, Turkoglu, who handled the ball when it mattered, and Lewis, whose catch-and-shoot game was devastating in the second half. I expect to see some more of the same out of Howard, and perhaps a similar savvy effort from Hedo, but if Lewis is going to knock down shots that easily, then yes, this could be a long series--or a short one in favor of Orlando.

One last thing: In my Nuggets-Lakers preview, I talked about how the league would like to see a Kobe-LeBron final, and cautioned that subconsciously that could swing the whistles toward LA. Well, all things considered, I thought the Western Conference Finals openers was decently officiated. Not so tonight's game, and most especially on that brutal call that fouled Howard out of the game. The contact on LeBron's drive was at best incidental, it was an absolutely critical moment in the game for the Cavs, and one just has to hope that the ref blew it instead of indulging in conspiracy theories. And yes, the call on Varejao when Hedo practically travelled running into him on the jumper-whistle near the three point line late in the 4th was also a bad call, and went against Cleveland. But for impact--fouling out the Defensive Player of the Year on a lead-changing dribble-penetration basket with 25 seconds to play--it paled by comparison.

Bottom line, two riveting games to begin the conference finals.