CLEVELAND — Before the Magic and Cavaliers took the floor inside Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for Game 1 of the best-of-7 series between the Nos. 4 and 5 seeds in the East, both coaches stressed the importance of starting strong.

First, it was Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff who said ahead of tipoff that he wanted Orlando to chase all Saturday afternoon long.

Then, it was Magic coach Jamahl Mosley who made it clear he wanted his squad to throw the first punch.

If Orlando wants to avoid returning home trailing the series 2-0, it can’t fall behind the same way it did to open Saturday’s 97-83 loss.

Donovan Mitchell paced the Cavs with 30 points, while Jarrett Allen (18 rebounds) and Evan Mobley (11 rebounds) added 16 points apiece.

Bickerstaff’s wish came true as the Cavaliers hit their first five 3-pointers to hold a double-digit lead in the opening quarter. Even as Cleveland cooled off from beyond the arc, the Magic lacked offensive firepower, especially in the backcourt.

Guards Jalen Suggs (13 points) and Gary Harris (zero) went a combined 1 of 12 from 3 while Orlando overall went 8 of 37 (21.6%).

Even Paolo Banchero, who led Orlando with 24 points, shot 2 of 7 from 3 and struggled to take care of the ball with nine turnovers.

Cleveland wasn’t much better at 8 of 30 (26.7%), but the sharpshooting from the jump resulted in the Magic chasing — just as Bickerstaff wanted.

Despite a third-quarter push in which the Magic cut the deficit to four points twice, the Cavaliers never let go of the lead.

But not all is lost.

The Magic only have to split on the first two road games of the series to flip homecourt advantage.

The sides meet again in Cleveland on Monday (Bally Sports Florida, 7) as Orlando will aim to shoot the ball better and tie the first-round series.

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