The story of Saturday’s matchup between the Miami Heat and Orlando Magic was that Jimmy Butler missed the game due to illness. Butler, who was suffering from a stomach bug, left Friday’s loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first quarter and did not travel with the Heat to Orlando.
However, the big takeaway from Miami’s 121-114 loss to the Magic is that the Heat blew a 25-point lead and were outscored 37-8 in the fourth quarter.
Cole Anthony scored 35 points off the bench, including 27 in the second half to fuel Orlando’s comeback. The fifth-year guard also had eight rebounds and nine assists in what was easily his best game of the season.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope added 24 points, while Goga Bitadze scored 18 points with 13 rebounds. With the win, the Magic improved to 18-12 and increased their lead over Miami to three games in the Southeast Division. Orlando also maintained the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Heat took a 63-38 lead with 5:17 left in the fourth quarter on a dunk by Kel’el Ware. They led 76-56 at halftime and increased the margin to 106-84 after three quarters. But Miami fell apart over the next 12 minutes as Orlando went on a 12-0 run to start the fourth.
Midway through the frame, the Magic narrowed the lead to eight points. Orlando finally took the lead on a Caldwell-Pope jumper with 2:43 left in regulation. Miami was 2 of 18 from the field in the quarter, including 0 of 8 on 3-pointers.
Teams that have a 22-point lead going into the fourth quarter do not lose, since the Tim Reynolds, Associated Press he pointed out. Five years ago, those teams went 796-0 by that margin.
Teams with a lead of 22 points or more entering the fourth quarter were 796-0 in NBA games since Dec. 22, 2019.
Heat led by 22 entering the fourth tonight.
The final: Magic 121, Heat 114.
—Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) December 22, 2024
Bam Adebayo and Terry Rozier each scored 23 points to lead the Heat, while Tyler Herro followed with 22 points, six rebounds and five assists. Replacing Butler, Dru Smith scored 14 and Nikola Jović contributed just four after being placed in the starting lineup.
Orlando was without Jalen Suggs, who suffered a sprained ankle in Thursday’s 105-99 loss to the Thunder. That meant the Magic were missing their three best scorers with Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner recovering from oblique injuries.
The Heat face the Brooklyn Nets on Monday before playing the Magic again next Thursday. Orlando continues its great comeback with a matchup against the Boston Celtics on Monday.