Orlando is a win away from the NBA Finals

The Orlando Magic is now one win away from reaching the NBA Finals, and the Cleveland Cavaliers and their superstar, LeBron James, are one loss from having their dream season end in nightmarish fashion.

Dwight Howard scored 27 points -- including 10 in the game’s extra period -- and Rafer Alston had a career playoff-high 26 points Tuesday night as the Magic beat the Cavaliers, 116-114, in overtime to take a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

“This thing is a long, long, long way from over,” Orlando Coach Stan Van Gundy said. “When you’ve got a guy as great as him on the other side, you’re a long way from done.”

James, who finished with 44 points, had one last chance to win the game in overtime, but his three-point attempt from 38 feet as time expired clanged off the left side of the rim.

“I always feel that I can make any shot that I take,” James said. “It felt good leaving my hand, but then it didn’t look good as it got into the air.”

The Magic made 17 of 38 three-point attempts -- 44.7% -- including one from Rashard Lewis in the left corner with 4.1 seconds left in regulation that gave Orlando a 100-98 lead.

After a Cleveland timeout, James took the ensuing inbounds pass, drove down the lane toward the basket and drew a blocking foul against Orlando’s Mickael Pietrus with 0.5 seconds left.

With Amway Arena’s sellout crowd of 17,461 booing, James hit both shots to tie the score.

On the next inbounds play, the Magic tried to have Hedo Turkoglu pass the ball to Howard near the Cleveland basket. Howard and Anderson Varejao got tangled up without Howard catching the ball, leaving Orlando fans calling for a foul that never came.

James’ 44 points came on 13-for-29 shooting, and Cleveland point guard Mo Williams, who had guaranteed on Monday that the Cavaliers would win the series, scored 18 points but made only five of 15 shots.

After the game ended, Magic players acknowledged that Williams’ guarantee offered extra motivation.

“That’s something he’s going to have to live with as far as tonight’s game,” said Alston, who scored the Magic’s first 10 points of the second half to help erase Orlando’s 58-50 halftime deficit.

“We are a practical team, so I’ll probably enjoy it on the plane ride going to Cleveland.”

The Cavaliers turned the ball over four times in overtime.

“It hurt a lot,” Cleveland Coach Mike Brown said. “When you turn the ball over, you don’t give yourself an opportunity, obviously, to score.”

Lewis finished with 17 points, while Turkoglu had 15.

Game 5 is set for Thursday night in Cleveland, where the Magic has won three of the last five games between the teams.

With a victory, Orlando would earn its second trip to the NBA Finals in franchise history and its first since 1995.

A sixth game would be Saturday in Orlando. A seventh game would be Monday in Cleveland.

After Cleveland and Orlando combined for 58 personal fouls during Game 3 -- including one foul on an elbow by Orlando’s Anthony Johnson that left the left side of Williams’ face bloodied and in need of four stitches -- they combined for 50 fouls Tuesday night.

Howard picked up his sixth technical foul of the postseason -- one short of a mandatory one-game suspension -- after Varejao wasn’t called for a flagrant foul on him with 4:11 remaining in the third quarter.

But after the overtime period ended, it was Howard and the Magic who had the last laugh.

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jrobbins@orlandosentinel.com