With star Giannis Antetokounmpo battling foul trouble Monday night against the Orlando Magic, the Milwaukee Bucks showed they didn’t always need their leader.
As Antetokounmpo sat on the bench midway through the fourth quarter, Milwaukee discarded a feisty effort by an under-manned Magic squad to go on a 16-0 run toward the end of the game to take a 22-point lead and eventually left the Amway Center with a 121-99 victory.
Just five minutes after the Magic had pulled within two points on an Aaron Gordon dunk attempt over Antetokounmpo that rolled around the rim and in, Orlando suffered a drought. The Magic managed a Mo Bamba field goal and then started a scoreless spell that spanned more than three minutes.
Despite his foul trouble, Antetokounmpo scored 22 points and Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis Jr. had 20 points apiece.
The way the Magic started, it looked like Monday night Amway Center was going to be the Nikola Vucevic show. After Vucevic scored 10 of the Magic’s first 12 points, however, Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer had seen enough.
He called timeout and made some defensive adjustments that limited Vucevic’s touches, and even though Vucevic did score 19 points by halftime and 28 for the game, the adjustments were just enough to limit his impact. Milwaukee started pulling away, but Orlando hung tough.
Other than Gordon’s production, the Magic could not find any consistent offense. Gordon, playing in a rare role as the main Magic ball handler, closed with 21 points, eight assists and five rebounds.
The Magic also put the Bucks on the free-throw line far too often as Milwaukee hit 14 of 16 shots from the line in the first half. Meanwhile, the Magic shot just two free throws in the first 24 minutes, making one. The Magic also had 11 first-half turnovers.
Things looked good for the Magic early with Vucevic’s hot start. Orlando jumped out to a 21-16 lead, but the Magic then watched Milwaukee go on an 8-2 run to take control.
Orlando wasn’t going away easily. Rookie point guard Cole Anthony finally started giving the Magic an offensive lift and the Magic trailed just 86-82 after three quarters.
The late Milwaukee run, however, was just too much for the Magic, who were without Evan Fournier for the sixth straight game and fell to 6-5 overall.
The Magic will play their next six games on the road, with back-to-back contests against the Celtics Wednesday and Friday.
