Magic Enjoy Game 3 Win, But Eye Bigger Prize

The Orlando Magic are happy with their Game 3 win in the 2024 NBA Playoffs, but they aren't satisfied.

Jeremy Brener | Apr 25, 2024

Apr 25, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic guard Jalen Suggs (4) dunks during the second / Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

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ORLANDO — The Orlando Magic are celebrating their first playoff win at home in 13 years after beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 121-83 on Thursday night at the Kia Center.

The win cuts the Magic's deficit in the series as they look towards evening things up, but the team is aware that the job is not finished.

"This is a really good momentum builder," Jalen Suggs said postgame. "Continuing to build on it, continuing to get better. Not get too high, not get too low. But enjoy this moment, because it's a special one."

After losing the first two games of the series in Cleveland where the team failed to score 90 points — something the team had only done once during the regular season — there was frustration, but Game 3 offered an opportunity to bounce back into the series. However, it's very clear that the Magic aren't satisfied with just one win.

"I don't think anybody's partying or anything," Paolo Banchero said. "We know we got to do the same thing on Saturday, so I think it's pretty simple. Obviously, we're proud of a win tonight. It is big to get your first playoff win at home just for this group, but we want to win the whole series, so we got to do it again."

They have to win three times in the next four games in order to advance to the second round, something the franchise hasn't done since 2010.

Game 4 is set to tipoff at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday.

Related stories on the Orlando Magic

GAME 3 RECAP: The Orlando Magic blew out the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Playoffs. CLICK HERE

STARTING 5 CHANGES: The Orlando Magic made a change to the starting lineup, inserting Wendell Carter Jr. in for Jonathan Isaac. CLICK HERE

BIG CHANGES COMING: Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner outlined some changes the team will make ahead of Game 3. CLICK HERE

MAGIC NEED FANS: The Orlando Magic are excited to play playoff basketball in front of their home fans. CLICK HERE

BETTING ODDS: Despite losing the first two games of the series, the Orlando Magic are favored against the Cleveland Cavaliers. CLICK HERE

Published Apr 25, 2024

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.