Magic Gaming Comes Up Clutch in Series Sweep of Cavs Legion GC

ORLANDO – Fresh off a bye week, Magic Gaming was aiming to use a balanced offensive attack, make key defensive plays in crucial moments, and put their resiliency on display in order to snap a five-game losing streak and get their season back on track by earning a pair of victories over Cavs Legion GC.

Mission accomplished.

Game 1: Caught in the middle of a back-and-forth battle with Cavs Legion GC, Magic Gaming came up with clutch plays in critical moments to snap a five-game losing skid and earn an 85-82 victory over Cleveland.

After Brendan “Reizey” Hill found Robert “May” May for a dunk to bring Orlando within one – causing Cleveland to call timeout – Justin “Snubby” Stemerman stole the subsequent inbounds pass and took it the distance for a go-ahead slam with 13.8 seconds left.

“Snubby’s steal on the left wing was a huge decision we made there to put him on ball to see if he could get that really quick,” Magic Gaming General Manager and Head Coach Jonah Edwards said. “That was really the way we won that game was off that steal and he’s really, really good at that. He’s an incredibly gritty player.”

Magic Gaming, which spent their bye week focused on improving their defensive intensity and rebounding, then forced Cavs Legion GC sharpshooter William “Strainer” Morales to take an errant off-balanced three and secured the board with 5.2 ticks remaining.

After Reizey calmly drained two free throws with 2.5 seconds left, Magic Gaming once again delivered on the defensive end as Daniel “DT” Tlais blocked a potential game-tying three-point attempt by Strainer at the buzzer.

Reizey, who was sensational throughout the contest, finished the outing with game highs in points (40) and assists (10). Orlando’s floor general was phenomenal in the final frame, knocking down three triples and scoring 15 points in the period.

“Maybe one of the best performances Reizey’s had in a Magic Gaming uniform,” said Edwards of his point guard. “I thought he was in complete control of the game, the pace of the game, (and) he really was not making many mistakes.”

Magic Gaming finished with four players in double figures, which is often a key indicator in their success. Snubby scored 15, DT tallied 13 points and five rebounds, and May notched 12 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks.

“If we’re all a threat to score, then Reid will get more open looks, Snubby will get more open looks, and Robbie will get more open looks,” said DT, the team’s power forward. “I think that’s one of the biggest things this year is that we have Future (Josue “FutureClutch” Acosta Gomez), who is actually one of, if not the best offensive lock in the league. And Robbie has been a lot better offensively than people give him credit for. I feel like it’s big and it just opens things up for everyone.”

For Cavs Legion GC, point guard Albano “oFab” Thomallari posted 34 points and eight assists, while center Devin “DLaw” Lawrence added 20 points and 13 rebounds. Strainer recorded 16 points and seven assists.

Game 2: If you weren’t paying close attention, you may have thought game two of this series was an instant replay of the first contest due to the repeat back-and-forth fourth action.

And yet once again, Magic Gaming proved without a doubt that they are the more resilient squad as they took another close game over Cavs Legion GC.

Reizey found May for a go-ahead jam with 37.5 seconds left as Orlando edged Cleveland, 68-63, in Game 2.

Defense and free throws in the closing moments were once again a deciding factor. DT came up with another clutch block, rejecting a potential go-ahead shot from DLaw with 26 ticks remaining. After being intentionally fouled, Reizey then drained two freebies to put Magic Gaming up three.

“I knew we were up one and I was just going to either let them hit the corner, and him have to beat us or get the stop in the paint; I wasn’t going to let him dunk,” DT said of his big block. “I got good timing (on) it, grabbed the board, and then (wrapped it up).”

On Cavs Legion GC’s next possession, Snubby was able to alter oFab’s shot enough for him to miss a potential game-tying triple. Reizey, once again intentionally fouled, made two more free throws to seal the victory.

Reizey totaled 24 points and 11 assists, DT notched 18 points and three steals, and May accumulated 16 points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks.

“In general, our offense has been much, much better in scrimmages (and) it’s been much better overall,” Edwards said. “We’re obviously looking to keep that momentum going into Saturday.”

For Cleveland, oFab posted 27 points and 10 assists, while DLaw scored 16.

Quote to Note: “I think it was huge (to get these two wins) because we were 4-1, we were on a five-game losing streak, so (we needed) to get back into the win column. I think this is the biggest week of our season. I said it to everyone I’ve talked to. We have a very tough four-game schedule coming up after the Hawks. And the Hawks are kind of struggling, flip-flopping lineups right now, so we got this 2-0, we’ve got to get this 2-0 on Saturday, and we’re back at 8-6, and in the playoff hunt.” – DT

Looking Ahead: Magic Gaming’s defense will be put to the test when they go head-to-head with Hawks Talon GC for a pair of contests on Saturday starting at 9 p.m. ET.

Atlanta’s offensive unit is led by Caesar “Ceez” Martinez, who currently ranks fourth in the league in scoring and is pouring in a whopping 28.5 points per contest. Earlier this season, the No. 11 overall pick in the 2021 NBA 2K League Draft erupted for a single-game franchise-record 50 points and, in the process, helped Hawks Talon GC record a season-best 89 points in a victory over Heat Check Gaming.

“Any time Ceez is on the court, his team has a chance to win a game,” Edwards explained. “The kid has been phenomenal to start the year. The team starts and kind of ends with Ceez to a degree because he’s obviously a super high volume, usage-type guard. (He’s) very effective when he’s going.”

While Atlanta has shuffled its lineup amidst a six-game losing skid, Michael “BP” Diaz-Cruz will also be on Orlando’s radar regardless of whether he’s at the shooting guard or small forward position.

“The Hawks team when they’re at their best is actually pretty solid,” Edwards said. “We’re aware that they’re kind of against the ropes right now and they’re going to be hungry to get some wins.”

Those games will air live on the NBA 2K League’s Twitch and YouTube channels.