Cole Anthony scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, including some acrobatic shots at the rim, as the visiting Orlando Magic held on to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-104 on Wednesday night at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
Anthony finished with 18 points but none bigger than what he gave the Magic in the final quarter after they squandered a 23-point lead.
Gary Harris finished with 19 points, Chuma Okeke had 18 and Dwayne Bacon had 16 for Orlando (19-43), which snapped a six-game losing streak and swept the three-game season series with the Cavaliers.
Okeke had to leave late in the game after he rolled his left ankle when he stepped on the foot of a Cavs player.
Darius Garland scored a game-high 25 points to lead the Cavs, who dropped their third straight. Cedi Osman finished with 19 points and Jarrett Allen had 17 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland (21-41).
Orlando got seven quick points from Okeke in the third quarter to break open a six-point halftime lead (50-44), then used a 17-5 run over a 5:04 stretch to go up 69-51.
The lead reached 23, the largest of the game for Orlando, when R.J. Hampton converted a layup to make it 86-63 with 10:42 remaining.
But the Cavs ramped up their ball pressure and it helped spark 15-4 run over a 3:13 stretch that pulled them within 12 at 90-78.
Cleveland kept chipping away as Orlando struggled to get its offense going, eventually tying the game at 104-104 on a 3 by Kevin Love.
But Anthony converted an acrobatic layup over Allen to break the tie, then sank two free throws after Bacon came up with a steal.
Osman then missed a 3 and James Ennis rebounded, leading to a pair of free throws that clinched it.
Magic head coach Steve Clifford was not with the team as he remains in the league’s health and safety protocols.
Orlando returns to action Friday in Memphis for the first of a back-to-back set with the Grizzlies. The game tips off at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast on Bally Sports Florida. The teams will then play Saturday at Amway Center.
