Damian Lillard scored 30 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 26 points and 11 boards to lead the host Milwaukee Bucks to a dominant 122-93 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday.
Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis each added 14 points off the bench for Milwaukee, which won for the fifth time in six games. Brook Lopez scored 13 points and blocked five shots.
Paolo Banchero led Orlando with 22 points on 8-for-20 shooting. Wendell Carter Jr. added 12 points and 10 boards as the Magic took their fourth loss in six games. Trevelin Queen scored 13 points, Cole Anthony had 11 and Anthony Black contributed 10.
Milwaukee dominated the first quarter while building a 34-16 lead. Orlando went on a stretch of five minutes without scoring.
In the second, the Magic only got as close as 13 points before the Bucks led 62-41 at halftime.
Orlando threw up 23 3-point attempts in the half and made just four. Milwaukee was 3-for-6 from long ranger before the break, while Lillard led the Bucks with 18 points.
Milwaukee guard Andre Jackson Jr. left this game just before halftime in some clear discomfort after getting hit on his right side. After trying to warm up during the break, he was ruled out because of a right hip contusion.
In the third it was more of the same from the Bucks, who shot 62.5 percent from the floor in the period and led 92-68 going into the fourth.
Lillard put his final stamp on the game at the start of the final quarter with two steals against Banchero and a deep step-back 3-pointer. That helped Milwaukee eventually get to its largest lead of 32.
Antetokounmpo had his streak of seven consecutive games of scoring over 30-plus points against the Magic came to an end when he did not play in the fourth quarter.
Still, Antetokounmpo passed Walter Davis (19,521) to move up to No. 55 on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Antetokounmpo ended the night with 19,535 career points.
The Bucks clinched the four-game season series against Orlando with their third consecutive win. The teams meet again on March 8 in Milwaukee.
–Field Level Media
Buddy Hield scored 33 points, Stephen Curry tallied 19 of his 22 points in the second half, and the Golden State Warriors rode a stifling defensive performance to a 103-89…
Andrew Nembhard scored 23 points and Tyrese Haliburton had 22 points, 13 assists and three blocked shots as the Indiana Pacers pulled away for a 121-112 road win over the…
Boston Celtics guard Jrue Holiday is no longer on the team’s injury list and is set to play Monday night against the New York Knicks in the series opener of…
Pacers take Game 1 in series vs. top-seeded Cavaliers
Celtics G Jrue Holiday (hamstring) set to return vs. Knicks
Rested Thunder prepare to host battle-tested Nuggets in Game 1
Can Knicks reverse Celtics’ regular-season dominance in Game 1?