Magic show their resilience with epic comeback

Orlando outscored Miami 37-8 in the fourth quarter to complete its biggest comeback in at least 27 seasons. Cole Anthony led the way, putting up 13 points, four rebounds and four assists in Orlando's dominant final quarter.

Orlando was already missing Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner with torn obliques and Gary Harris with a hamstring sprain. Then point guard Jalen Suggs suffered an ankle injury Thursday against the Oklahoma City Thunder. In the second quarter Saturday, starting center Wendell Carter, Jr. picked up two quick technical fouls and got ejected. Late in the first quarter, they lost Moe Wagner when he hurt his left knee and had to be helped off the court.

Those six missing players average a combined 96.2 points per game. If you include 20-year-old Anthony Black, who committed his fifth foul 43 seconds into the second half and sat the rest of the game, it's 104.9.

So for their epic comeback, the Magic had to rely on players like Trevelin Queen, who had scored three points all season, yet scored five in the fourth quarter. They got six points in the fourth from last year's lottery pick Jett Howard, who averages 3.9 per game. Cory Joseph played the entire fourth quarter after logging 63 minutes all season.

But the heart of the comeback came from Anthony, who has seen his playing time drop to 11 minutes per game this season. He's remained a relentlessly encouraging player on the bench for the Magic, who delivered when his team needed him most. After the game, Anthony was emotional about how much the win meant to him.

Magic coach Jamahl Mosley deserves a lot of credit for having the last players on the bench prepared and motivated to demolish a playoff team like the Heat in crunch time. But it was the backups who seized rare opportunities that got Orlando its best win of the year.

With Banchero on the mend and Suggs likely returning soon, those opportunities are going to become rarer. Saturday proved this Magic team has a ton of depth — and a ton of heart.