MKRob Sports

Nick Anderson, who lives in infamy in these parts for blowing four free throws in the final seconds of the 1995 Finals opener, walked to center court last night, intent on whipping the sellout crowd into a frenzy with a countdown to the tipoff of Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

At one point, Anderson, now a Magic front-office employee, shouted into the PA, “Do you know what time it is?”

Everybody does now. For once around here, it’s not time for a Finals sweep.

The Magic, a loser in four games to the Rockets in ’95, and facing an 0-3 deficit with a loss Tuesday night to the Lakers, posted the first Finals win in franchise history, 108-104.

Like its shooting, the Magic’s timing couldn’t have been better. Shooting only 36% in the Finals, Orlando came back home and promptly set the nets ablaze, hitting a Finals-record 62.5% from the field.

Asked to explain the turnaround and the best shooting game since Michael Jordan‘s Bulls defeated the Lakers in 1991, Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said, “It was going in the basket.”

Oh, so that was the secret?

“It’s a tried-and-true formula,” he added. “When the ball goes in the basket 63% of the time, yeah, those are really great shots.”

But on a night when its golden touch normally would have been good enough to turn the game into a rout early on, the Magic could never completely shake the Lakers until Mickael Pietrus stole the ball from Kobe Bryant in the final 30 seconds.

After Rashard Lewis missed a late baseline jumper, Bryant raced up the court with Orlando leading 104-102 and a chance for L.A. to tie the game. But as he began his move to the hoop, Bryant had the ball poked away by Dwight Howard, and Pietrus came away with the steal. Pietrus was fouled by Bryant and coolly sank both foul shots for a 106-102 lead with 28.7 seconds left.

“Howard just made a great play with his hands,” Bryant said. “They came up with the ball, simple as that.”

It marked a fitting ending for Bryant, who missed 13 of his final 17 attempts after coming out as hot as the Magic. Bryant finished with 31 points, but 17 came in the first quarter when he made seven of eight shots. With the Lakers still very much in contention, despite the Magic’s record shooting, Bryant missed four of six shots in the fourth, including an 0-for-3 effort beyond the arc.

“We’re all frail as humans,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “Their defense started to come hard to him and he never got that rhythm again.”

The Magic found the rhythm right away, shooting better than 70% over the first 35 minutes. Rafer Alston, who made only three of 17 shots and scored only 10 points in L.A., made eight of his first nine attempts. He finished hitting eight of 12 shots for 20 points. Lewis and Howard led the Magic with 21 points apiece.

“I was aggressive from start to finish,” Alston said. “I mixed it up, and that’s where I’m at my best.”

So was the Magic, and Orlando finally got to celebrate a Finals victory.