Tracy McGrady had another spectactular game on Christmas day. T-Mac scored 41 points, handed out 11 assists and grabbed 9 rebounds in the matchup against Lebron James. James is definitely playing better than he did during the summer league. But the same thing happened when he was paired up against someone who played defense. Keith Bogans effectively shut down James - and it was no fluke. Bogans did the same thing in the summer league, forcing 3 turnovers in about a minute - one of which that led to the Britton Johnsen dunk.
The first half was featured on offense and was quickly turning into a battle of who could outscore the other. Both teams came out in the second half playing a little better on the defensive end. I thought the Magic had plenty of opportunity to close the game out in the fourth as James was fading and the rest of the team looked tired. With the game tied at 97, the Magic were forced into their second overtime of the year. From the tipoff - the game was there for the winning. Juwan Howard hit some big time shots to put the Magic up and they did not look back. McGrady hit a crazy three point shot to seal the deal with less than a minute to go. On the Magic's final possesion, McGrady had the ball at the top of the arc with time running down on the shot clock. James stepped up to defend him, but T-Mac pulled up and nailed another 3.
Magic win another game.
