It took an instant ESPN Classic for the Orlando Magic to finally secure their first NBA Finals win on the 14th anniversary of a Finals’ loss at home to Houston. Shooting a Finals’ record 62.5 percent from the floor for game three Tuesday night, the Magic responded from game two’s disheartening overtime loss on the road with a must win over the Los Angeles Lakers. A Finals’ 108-104 homecourt triumph where even the confetti couldn’t wait ’til time expired.

Rafer Alston and Mickael Pietrus, a tandem that was all but invisible offensively in the first two games for Orlando, set the tone at the start and finish, respectively. Not even Kobe Bryant could rescue the Lakers, who may well be in for a series after all. Alston, zipping about with the freedom that made him a playground legend in New York City growing up, connected on his first five field goals and collected 20 points. Alston’s eight-of-12 field goals was a far cry from the three-of-17 field combined goals he registered in the first two games.

Meanwhile Mickael, a part of the biggest playoff steal since Orlando’s Nick Anderson stole the ball from Chicago’s Michael Jordon in 1995, contributed nine of his 18 points in the fourth period, including a put-back slam when the Magic were waning offensively. “That shot may have been the biggest shot of the game,” said Orlando Coach Stan Van Gundy.

“We lost this game on the defensive end,” said Bryant, who credited Magic defensive stalwart Dwight Howard for having great hands in knocking the ball away from him on a play that led to Pietrus getting to the ball and hitting two free throws that left L.A. trailing, 106-102. Kobe’s contention that the series wasn’t over after L.A.’s game one blowout suddenly seems feasible.

Bryant (31 points) pointed out what the Magic had already accomplished in closing out Boston in game seven in Boston, and nearly beating Cleveland in the first two games in Ohio. Kobe proved to be human after all, hitting eight of first 11 shots before misfiring on 11 of his last 14.

“The one thing you can’t question about this team is our resilience,” said Van Gundy. “Whether it’s game to game or minute to minute, our team will keep playing.. We’ve had bad games like game one, but it’s never a matter of us quitting..”

“Believe it or not, the locker room’s been the same after every game,” said Alston, who reminded himself to have fun before Tuesday’s tip. “That’s the beauty of this team. We don’t hang our heads. We encourage each other. We get on each other. We’re able to take constructive criticism from one another. That’s the best thing about this team.”

Despite connecting on 35-of-50 two-pointers, Orlando still needed all of those highlight plays down the stretch to survive against L.A., which opened the fourth period by hitting its first seven shots.

“I think we were taking better shots and got to the rim,” Howard said. ”Once a couple of guys make shots, our confidence rises. We did a great job of getting open shots…We’re happy we won, but not satisfied.”

What the Magic felt best about was balance. Howard’s final line was fine as in 21 points, 14 rebounds and just one turnover, six fewer than game two. He also hit 11-of-16 free throws, missing the same number as Bryant.. Magic teammate Rashard Lewis, coming off a 34-point night in game two, racked up 21 points. In the first half when Orlando set a Finals’ record by hitting 75 percent of its field goals, Lewis’s four-of-seven field goals was the lowest percentage-wise of all Magic shooters. Hedo Turkoglu accounted for 18 points.

Dennis Neumann, the play-by-play man for the Magic’s flagship radio station, still thinks Orlando can play better than it did Tuesday. Dennis cited Orlando’s five-of-14 three-point shooting as well as L.A.’s 11 offensive rebounds as areas to shore up.

“Confidence has never been an issue with this Magic team, even when they were down 0-2 (after Sunday),” noted Scott Anez, host of Magic Rewind.

“Stan’s first comment on the (postgame) podium addressed the resilience that has been a key to this team all season long,” Neumann said.

One thing for sure. The Magic won game three. L.A. didn’t lose it. And certainly there’s been little to indicate that the Lakers will lapse into the lack of concentration they exhibited during the Western Conference semifinals against Houston.

So Orlando will have to tie this series at 2-2 come Thursday night the old-fashioned way. The Magic will have to earn it.

Kobe Bryant, he of a personal playoff best 40 points in L.A.’s hurricane-force win over Orlando, refused to bask in glory after game one of the NBA Finals. “The best thing,” he said, “is to forget about it.”

What’s unforgettable is this recent new look Kobe sports after knocking down a long-range shot. He turns and bares his teeth. Reminds me of Bubba in the film, Forrest Gump.. A rabid Bubba, who’s never letting go ’til he seizes his first NBA ring since 2002 when he and Shaq finished off a Laker three-peat. After collecting six first-period points on Thursday night, Bryant doubled his pleasure with a dirty dozen in the second period as L.A. transformed a five-point deficit into a 10-point halftime lead.

Given the Magic’s penchant for playoff comebacks, what problem would it be to bounce back?

Plenty. As in Kobe breaking out for 18 third-period points on an array of normal and supernatural, gravity-defying hoops that amplified Denver Coach George Karl’s assertion about Jesus not being able to guard Kobe. Consider, too, that Kobe outscored Orlando in the quarter.

Perhaps KOBE stands for Killing Orlando By Enthusiam. If every picture tells a story, seeing Dwight Howard’s normally-effervescent mug frowning online speaks volumes for how this Hollywood night went. Bryant’s showtime after halftime brought back Dandy Don Meredith’s lyrics from the early days of ABC’s Monday Night Football: “Turn out the lights. The party’s over.”

Kobe would have none of this toast of Tinsel town stuff following the 100-75 victory. He was a party to a game six Boston blowout of L.A. as the Celtics made the Lakers disappear in the finale of last year’s NBA Finals. He acknowledged on several occasions Thursday night the resilience of the Orlando Magic.

And while Thursday night’s L.A. triumph seemed easy as ABC with Bryant’s teammates showing up Orlando’s big three – Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu – game one could be viewed in this light by the Magic. ‘L.A. played nearly as well as they can play, and we played as poorly as we can play. We got it out of our systems. They’re writing us off again so let’s go prove ‘em wrong. And besides, we found a way to beat L.A. when Kobe scored 41 against us in the regular season.’

I’m just thankful I endured the big three’s combined 6-of-27 shooting night and the team’s 29.9 percent field-goal shooting in the comfort of my condo. Having watched the Lakers for decades, and that incredible run they had with Magic Johnson and company in the 80’s, Kobe simply continues the walk of stars in L.A.’s story. But Bryant, a far cry from the skinny teen that leaped from high school to the Lakers 13 years ago, had a strong supporting cast. Bigs’ Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom combined for 27 points as L.A’s frontline frustrated Howard into a 1-of-6 shooting night.

What surprised me as I fought late night fatigue to finish off a game that had been over since the third period was that I experienced zero panic in respect to Orlando’s chances. I viewed this as one game.. The Magic have passed this way before in their learning curve during the first three rounds of the playoffs.

Then again, I could be in denial cause there’s no denying that the man who speaks three languages fluently enhanced his world wide image on the NBA’s biggest stage in a way that caused ABC’s analyst, Jeff Van Gundy (brother of Magic Coach Stan), to state: “They say one man can’t win a series. I beg to differ.”

Kobe may well have none of that, insisting that even he and Shaq needed the Robert Horry’s and Derek Fisher’s en route to their trio of titles at the turn of the century.

During Magic Johnson’s interview of Kobe that aired at halftime, I recall Bryant just being happy to be in the conversation concerning the game’s greatest players ever. Trouble is Kobe, like Bird and Magic and MJ, will never, ever rest on laurels. KB ices his knees after games, but he’s up and in the gym at 5 a.m. He even admits his family’s suffering relationally as he obsesses about the prized goal.

Undoubtedly, Kobe and the Lakers are trying to set these (playoff) nights on fire.

Hot Toddy was a cookin’ once again at Winter Park’s Uncle Henry’s Country Kitchen. While in the midst of makin’ another two hefty hotcakes for my enjoyment, Toddy belted out lyrics from hit songs of yesteryear. Without missing a beat on her appointed orders on this special Saturday, she suddenly launched into these words: “Ladies and gentlemen. Please stand up and cheer for your ORLANDOOOO MAAGGIICC.”

Paul Porter, the Magic’s PA announcer since the team came to town in the late 1980’s, would’ve complimented the chef’s passion on the morning of May 30th. Oh yes, Toddy and Paul and a multitude of Magic fans undoubtedly danced the night away as Orlando rocked Cleveland, 103-90, at Amway Arena and rolled into its first NBA Finals since 1995.

What a packed house and national t.v. audience witnessed was more than a cathartic crushing of the Cavs that exorcised the Magic demons of seasons past. It seemed like old times, a flashback to Orlando’s 105-81 triumph over Indiana in game seven of the 1995 Eastern Conference finals. On this Saturday night, Magic Chairman Rich DeVos and CEO Bob Vander Weide joined Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy and his stalwart players on stage to not only hold high the character of this franchise, but accept both the shining silver basketball that belongs to the Eastern Conference champs and the challenge of beating the storied Los Angeles Lakers in the finals. Only GM Otis Smith was missing on stage, but everyone associated with the Magic organization knows Otis’s momentous contributions.

When the leader of the Magic band, Dwight Howard, stepped on the podium at center court after delivering a playoff-career high 40 points, there was no denying he’d been the super man this game. Cleveland’s chosen one, the one and only LeBron James, not only suffered through his worst game of this series, but exited without talking to the press.

Not surprisingly, Dwight’s first words on stage were, “I’d like to thank God because without Him none of this would be possible.” What’s intriguing is that Dwight also played out his night before fellow Christian and current Florida Gator great, Tim Tebow. (Tiger Woods was likewise in the house, too). Someone recently remarked that Dwight and Tim are the two humblest superstars in the Sunshine State.

And both have long since put to death the false premise that being someone who believes that “every good and perfect gift comes from above” cannot have the brave heart of a warrior. Not to mention being encouragers par excellence.

Certainly, there’s a lot to cherish from Saturday night. The Magic, 5-0 against Cleveland at home this season, once again celebrated another stellar game six series showing. Although he wasn’t a part of his teammates’ dismantling of Philly in that first-round closeout game due to a one-game league suspension, Dwight bounced back with a 23-point, 22-rebound performance in a must-win game six against the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics. Which led to a game seven Beantown beatdown of Boston.

Electing to twitter in the finale in Philly, Dwight texted teammates Friday morning about the time Toddy was comtemplating her Magic vocals, and urged them to be dominate. Of course, he led by example from the get go. Never once did he score less than eight in a quarter. Although LeBron matched Dwight’s 13 first-period points, James connected on only 3-of-13 field goals in the closing three periods and went scoreless in the second period as the Magic built a 58-40 halftime lead.

As to grading his evening, Dwight gave himself a B. “And my teammates, an A plus.” Reckon that shooting 10 percent better from the free-throw line against Cleveland, including Saturday night’s special 12-of-16, doesn’t count as much in his eyes as renowned reserve Mickael Pietrus personally outscoring Cleveland bench, 83-58, over six games. Or all-star forward Rashard Lewis (18 points Saturday) accounting for 15-of-31 three-pointers (.484) in the series, slightly higher than Pietrus’s 17-of-36 (.472).

In respect to three’s, the Magic are 7-1 in the playoffs and 45-11 for the season when they hit nine or more three-pointers. Cleveland, second in the NBA in three-point percentage this season, was soundly beaten from long distance by Orlando. The Magic connected on .408 of their attempts compared to the Cavs’ .323.

Howard saved his final post-game plaudits for Stan Van Gundy, who “pushes us to the limits. Me and Stan have had our ups and downs, but for the most he’s always done a great job of motivating me and my teammates. I told him when he first got here, he was going to have a soldier in me and I was always going to go to battle for him.”

What seems somewhat ironic was the day Orlando beat L.A. in the midst of a 4-0 West Coast swing to sweep the Lakers for the first time in its 20-year history, an L.A. Times headline screamed, “Magic have become a real threat in the East.” The story’s final line read: “If tonight’s game doesn’t turn out to be a Finals preview this season, there are more seasons coming.”

As for those players and pundits who laughed at Dwight’s lofty predictions of taking home an NBA title over the last two years, the smiling Howard may be the one who’s going to Disney World shortly after Father’s Day.

Thursday nights had been so kind to Orlando in the NBA playoffs. Close out Philadelphia in game six on the road without all-star center Dwight Howard. Beat Boston at home in game six, setting up that Magical Sunday closeout game in Beantown.

And then came Thursday, May 28th at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena. Quick as you can say Q, LeBron James was dominating down the stretch. Plus his posse shot the way they did on their way to the NBA’s foremost regular-season record. Mo Williams connected on six three’s and wound up with 24 points. Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Delonte West combined for 29 points. Meanwhile, Daniel Gibson, a hero in the Cavs’ playoff push two seasons ago, hit a pair of key fourth-period three-pointers off James’ assists. “It was a great team effort,” said Howard, concerning Cleveland’s balanced attack.

Not that Howard and the Magic have that much to worry about when they take the court at home for game six Saturday night, right? Statistically speaking, Orlando’s owned Cleveland at home for quite some time.

Pardon me if I don’t revel in that domination at this juncture. I still have the 3-1 series lead that the Magic lost to Detroit several years ago in my memory banks. And LeBron is dead set on willing his team to a rare rally. Specifically, becoming the ninth team in NBA history to come back from a 3-1 series deficit.

Back to game five in Cleveland. What undid the Magic was 11 missed free throws in the first half, a lack of defense not counting what James accomplished — and too much one-on-one basketball. And yes, King James, who said he attacks “no matter what’s going on.” No matter who gets in his way. Howard fouled out (with 2:22 left in the game and 24 points) for the third time this series, thanks to KJ initiating contact. LeBron figured in virtually every score personally or assist-wise in the fourth period. James accounted for 17 of his game-high 37 points in the final quarter, winding up with 14 rebounds and 12 assists for the night. Last time that specific triple double was posted was by Oscar Robertson in 1963.

For the third time in this series, the Magic were in a serious double-digit hole in the first half. Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy acknowledged that it takes a lot of energy to climb out, but early in the third period the Magic had turned a 22-point first-half deficit into an eight-point lead. Cleveland was turning the ball over, but Orlando simply couldn’t finish off the Cavs when they were vulnerable and crowd was silenced.

Although Magic forward Hedo Turkoglu racked up 29 points on 10-of-18 from the floor, Magic radio color analyst and former Orlando coach Richie Adubato said that Turk’s fourth personal foul early in the fourth period changed the course of Orlando’s offense.

When Magic point guard Rafer Alston referred to Orlando’s closing out the previous two playoff series on the road after Tuesday night’s Magic win, he also said what turned out to be prophetic Thursday night at the Q. (After amassing 26 points Tuesday, Rafer came back to earth Thursday, hitting his first shot (a three) and then missing his next nine shots. Fact is Cleveland’s starting guards outscored Orlando’s starting guards, 37-12).

“This (game five) is a little different,” Alston said Tuesday. “We are playing against one of the best players that ever laced up a pair of shoes, and you are playing against one of the best teams in the history of the game in the regular season. You expect them to come with it, to be energetic.”

What Orlando doesn’t want is to have to come back to the Q on Monday for game seven. As the Mamas and Papas once sung, “Monday, Monday. Can’t trust that day.”

Especially with King James in the house.

“Any time you’re as dangerous as I am, or the best guys in this league, when you have a live dribble it makes you that much more dangerous cause they (the Magic) don’t know what you’re going to do,” James said. “I always feel like I can get going during any part of the game. I don’t want to add any pressure to my teammates. They know we’re a very strong team when they knock down shots.”