The Orlando Magic faced a seemingly insurmountable 106-84 deficit entering the fourth quarter against the visiting Miami Heat in the Kia Center on Saturday night. Leave it to 2019-20 UNC basketball star Cole Anthony to pull off an epic surprise.
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Anthony sparked the Magic’s comeback right out of the gates in the final 12 minutes, scoring the first four points of the quarter via a tip-in dunk and driving hook shot. His teammates followed suit. And the 24-year-old reserve guard continued to fuel the unthinkable, totaling 13 points in the fourth quarter to power Orlando to the 121-114 victory.
Doing the math, Orlando outscored Miami in the fourth quarter, 37-8.
Understandably, the incredible feat was of the highly emotional variety for Anthony, who was averaging a career-low 5.1 points and 11.0 minutes before bumping those numbers to 6.2 and 11.5 by delivering 35 points in 28 minutes off the bench against the dumbfounded Heat. The former No. 15 overall draft pick added eight rebounds, nine assists, one steal, and one block.
“I’m all over the place, y’all,” Cole Anthony said on the court before coming to tears for a moment and ultimately giving countless shoutouts to his teammates. “It’s been a tough year, man…It just felt so good to feel like I was a part of winning, to feel like I contributed to something.”
Cole Anthony and the injury-riddled Orlando Magic (18-12) will now prepare for another daunting test at home. They host the defending NBA champion Boston Celtics (22-6) at 7 p.m. ET Monday.
Stay tuned to North Carolina Tar Heels On SI for more NBA Tar Heel updates and other UNC basketball news.
