ESPN announcer apologizes for error during Magic vs Cavaliers game
Game one of the Cleveland Cavaliers' first-round series against the Orlando Magic tipped off on Saturday afternoon without commentary audio. The moment caught many viewers by surprise, as the first few minutes played out with only in-arena audio. Cleveland jumped out to an early lead, much to the delight of the home fans.
After two minutes without audio, the commentary team came back, with Beth Mowins apologizing for the technical difficulties. While the game may have started out rocky for the commentary team, the rest of the quarter went off without a hitch as Mowins and the rest of the broadcast team covered the action.
"Just underway here in Cleveland, and we apologize for some technical difficulties we're having," Mowins said.
The Cavaliers held on to their early lead, finishing the first quarter up seven points. In the second, they kept the momentum rolling, adding another five points to their lead heading into the half.
In the third quarter, despite the Cavaliers outscoring the Magic 20-17, the momentum began to shift. Orlando took the floor in the fourth quarter with momentum on its side, outscoring the Cavaliers in the remainder of the game.
Nevertheless, Cleveland was able to defend home court, picking up a big win in Game 1 to jump out to a 1-0 series lead.
Looking at the Cavaliers vs. Magic regular season series on the heels of Cleveland's hot start to the postseason
While Cleveland was able to jump out to a 1-0 series lead while defending home court, all hope isn't lost for Orlando. During the regular season series between the two teams, the Cavaliers went 2-2.
Their final meeting of the season saw the Magic pick up a 116-109 win, but the game notably didn't see Donovan Mitchell take the floor. Given that, and the team's 48-34 record in the regular season, they're the betting favorites across major sportsbooks.
Despite the team finishing the season with the fourth-best record in the East, they are fourth with +1600 odds to win the East on FanDuel.
The Boston Celtics sit comfortably in first place after finishing the regular season with the best record in the league. Behind them, the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers sit tied with +850 odds to win the East, despite the 76ers finishing the regular season in seventh place.
The Milwaukee Bucks are fourth with +1000 odds to win the East, followed by the Cleveland Cavaliers. The odds are somewhat surprising, considering that Joel Embiid missed much of the regular season, and the 76ers will have a tough first-round matchup against the New York Knicks.