The Magic turned in a good team effort last night in putting the Bobcats away in this series. Vince Carter led the way for the Magic last night with 21 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists before fouling out. Jameer Nelson only shot 4 of 12 from the floor last night but he still finished up with 18 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists and 2 steals. Rashard Lewis pitched in with 17 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists last night. Matt Barnes (14 points) and Mickael Pietrus (13 points) both helped out offensively for the Magic last night. The Magic sweep the Bobcats 4 games to none. They are waiting for either the Hawks or Bucks who are tied at 2 wins apiece. This is good because the Magic will get a little rest before the 2nd round of the playoffs.

The Magic hit the boards yesterday afternoon and it helped them hold off the pesky Bobcats in Charlotte. Jameer Nelson led the way for the Magic yesterday with 32 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. Rashard Lewis pitched in with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in this game. Dwight Howard fouled out yesterday but not before he had 13 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 7 blocked shots. The Magic are now up 3-0 in this series and they will look to finish it up in four so that they can get some much needed rest.

The Magic raced out to a 75-55 lead after three quarters before cruising to a easy victory last night. Vince Carter led the way for the Magic last night with 19 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Dwight Howard was dealing with foul trouble all night long but he still filled up the stat sheet with 15 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots. Rashard Lewis (13 points), Jameer Nelson (13 points) and Matt Barnes (11 points) all helped offensively for the Magic last night. The Magic are up 2-0 in this series as it shifts to Charlotte.

The Magic rushed out to a 59-43 lead at the half in this game and they pushed the lead to 22 in the third quarter before the Bobcats woke up and made a game of it the rest of the way out. I think the Magic were caught off guard by the aggressiveness especially on the glass that the Bobcats showed as they outrebounded the Magic 41-34. Jameer Nelson led the way for the Magic on offense in this game with 32 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 1 steal. Rashard Lewis also had a solid game offensively with 19 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist. Mickael Pietrus made some big shots late in this game for the Magic as he finished up with 14 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 blocked shot in 26 minutes on the court. Vince Carter had a rough day shooting the ball hitting only 4 of 19 shots before fouling out in the fourth quarter with 12 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist. Dwight Howard also had a rough day offensively and on the boards as he finished with 5 points, 7 rebounds and 9 blocked shots. J.J. Redick helped out of the bench with 10 points in only 19 minutes on the court. The Magic are now up 1-0 in this series.

This series is not an easy draw for the defending Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic. The Bobcats seem to be a team on a mission directed by crusty old Larry Brown who knows how to win the big one. Here are a closer look at the matchups in this series:

Point Guard: Raymond Felton is not a great player by any stretch of the imagination but he’s more than good enough to get the job done. He played in 80 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 33.0 minutes, 12.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game. His game is almost identical to Jameer Nelson’s.

Jameer Nelson makes the Magic’s offense go despite being a shoot first player. He played in 65 games (64 starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 28.6 minutes, 12.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. Nelson will need to keep his teammates heavily involved in the offense because the Bobcats are a pretty good defensive basketball team.

EDGE: EVEN

Shooting Guard: Stephen Jackson has icewater in his veins. He has never seen a big shot he wasn’t willing to take. When the Bobcats traded for him early this year it signalled that they were going to play to win this season. Jackson played in 72 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 39.3 minutes, 21.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game. With Vince Carter’s failures in playoffs past I look for Jackson to have a big series.

Vince Carter has never in his NBA career saved his best for last as he has struggled in the playoffs in the past. Carter played in 75 games (74 starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 30.8 minutes, 16.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. The Magic don’t need Carter to go off in this series but if he could average at least 15 points per game and hold Jackson down a bit the Magic will be happy.

EDGE: BOBCATS

Small Forward: Gerald Wallace is the best player on the Bobcats as he plays all out on both sides of the basketball court. He should abuse Matt Barnes in this series. Wallace played in 76 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 41.0 minutes, 18.2 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocked shots per game. He is the most likely player on the Bobcats to posterize Dwight Howard as he backs down from no one.

Sure, Matt Barnes is the Kobe “Stopper”. He will have his hands full with Wallace. Barnes played in 81 games (58 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 25.9 minutes, 8.8 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The Magic just want him to play hard and make Wallace work for everything he gets.

EDGE: HUGE FOR BOBCATS

Power Forward: Boris Diaw won’t be overmatched physically like he is on most nights as Rashard Lewis is a soft power forward also. Diaw played in 82 games (all starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 35.4 minutes, 11.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game. Diaw is a defense first player who will get in Rashard Lewis’ face.

Rashard Lewis just never seemed to get into gear this season after his 10-game suspension to start the year (PED related). Lewis played in 72 games (all starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 32.9 minutes, 14.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Lewis is still a good shooter and the Magic hope he’s on in this series.

EDGE: EVEN

Center: The Bobcats will likely be fouling Dwight Howard a lot with Tyson Chandler, Theo Ratliff and Nazr Mohammed sharing time in the middle. That’s 18 fouls to play with. Tyson Chandler will be the first center in for the Bobcats. He played in 51 games (27 starts) for the Bobcats this season and he averaged 22.8 minutes, 6.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. Chandler is no match for Dwight Howard.

Dwight Howard will be fouled a lot in this series and it’s a good strategy for the Bobcats to take. Howard played in 82 games (all starts) for the Magic this season and he averaged 34.7 minutes, 18.3 points, 13.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.8 blocked shots per game. If Howard can keep himself from getting frustrated due to the fouling he should have a big series.

EDGE: HUGE FOR THE MAGIC

BENCH: Both of these teams use their benches a lot. Tyrus Thomas (10.1 points, 6.1 rebouds, 0.9 assists and 1.5 blocks) will be a force in this series as he will push Rashard Lewis around when he is on the court. Nazr Mohammed (7.9 points, 5.2 rebounds) and Theo Ratliff (5.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots) will both be needed down low to counter Dwight Howard in this series. Larry Hughes, D.J. Augustin and Stephen Graham will also all likely get some P.T. in this series for the Bobcats.

J.J. Redick (9.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists) and Mickeal Pietrus (8.7 points, 2.9 rebounds) will be the two reserves used most in this series against the Bobcats. Don’t forget how solid Marcin Gortat played for the Magic last season as they can go with a Twin Tower look at times. Ryan Anderson, Jason Williams, Brandon Bass and Anthony Johnson are all capable players who could get some P.T. in this series.

EDGE: MAGIC

COACH: Larry Brown is one of the better coaches in NBA history. He led the Bobcats to a 44-38 record (53.7%) this season. He has a two year record with the Bobcats of 79-85 (48.2 %). Brown has now compiled a 1,089-885 record (55.2%) as a NBA head coach during the regular season and his teams are 100-89 (52.9%) in the post season. He led the Pistons to a NBA Championship during the 2003-04 season.

Stan Van Gundy is a great coach in his own right. He led the Magic to a 59-23 (72%) record during the regular season. He has now been in Orlando three years and he has a 170-76 record (69.1%) and he is 18-16 (52.9%) in the post season with the Magic.

EDGE: EVEN

PREDICTION: I see home court advantage being big in this series and I like the Magic in 6 games.

The Magic shot 59.8% from the floor and they outrebounded the Sixers 39-31 which explains win last night. Jameer Nelson led the way for the Magic last night with 21 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists. Marcin Gortat had one of his better games for the Magic last night with 16 points and 6 rebounds in only 16 minutes on the court. Vince Carter pitched in with 17 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists last night. Dwight Howard had 15 points, 12 rebounds and 2 assists despite playing less than 30 minutes. The Magic finish the season with a 59-23 record and they will battle the Charlotte Bobcats in the first round of the NBA Playoffs starting this weekend.

The Magic have locked up the second best record in the NBA by winning last night against the Pacers. They did it by outrebounding the Pacers 53-38. Vince Carter led the way for the Magic, who had 7 players in double figures scoring, with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Jameer Nelson was very efficient in running the offense as he finished up with 15 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists. Dwight Howard (12), Matt Barnes (13), Rashard Lewis (14), J.J. Redick (11) and Ryan Anderson (10) each pitched in with double figure scoring last night. The Magic are now 58-23 on the season.

This wound up being a big game for the Magic as they have passed the Lakers and now have the 2nd best record in the NBA. Sure, LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal didn’t play today but a win is a win and the Magic will take it. The Magic shot 48.1% from the floor as they were taking good shots the whole game long. Dwight Howard led the way for the Magic today with 22 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 6 blocked shots. Jameer Nelson also had one of his best games in quite a while finishing with 17 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals. Mickael Pietrus (12 points), Rashard Lewis (11 points), Matt Barnes (10 points) and J.J. Redick (10 points) all pitched in as the Magic had a very balanced attack in this game. The Magic are now 57-23 on the season.

Starting “power” forward Rashard Lewis just isn’t playing up to his ability this season. Lewis has played in 67 games (all starts) for the Magic this season and he is averaging 33.3 minutes, 14.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. If the Magic are going to make a serious run for the NBA Title this season they are going to need Lewis to pick up the pace from here on out.