NBA Game Recap - Orlando at Milwaukee
Mon Dec 9, 2019 8:00 PM EST

LAC
110
IND
99
F
CLE
88
BOS
110
F
ORL
101
MIL
110
F
SAC
119
HOU
118
F
TOR
93
CHI
92
F
DET
105
NO
103
F
OKC
104
UTA
90
F
MIN
109
PHO
125
F
MEM
110
GS
102
F

Milwaukee 110, Orlando 101

Dec 9, 2019, 8:00 PM EST

Final

1

2

3

4

T

Orlando

20

20

33

28

101

Milwaukee

31

21

28

30

110

Bucks top Magic for 15th straight win; Antetokounmpo gets 32
Mon Dec 9, 2019 11:33 PM

MILWAUKEE (AP) After outscoring opponents by an average of 34 points in their previous four games, the Milwaukee Bucks found out right away things would be tougher Monday when their first two shots were blocked.

That slowed the Bucks down, but they still can't be stopped.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 32 points and 15 rebounds to lead Milwaukee to its 15th straight victory, 110-101 over the Orlando Magic.

"Sometimes, it's good to have close games. You learn from that. You get used to being in close games and not always winning by 20 or 30," said Antetokounmpo, the reigning MVP. "We got the win, we grinded it out and played defense, but I think the two days in between made us a little bit rusty."

The Bucks were off Saturday and Sunday.

They outrebounded Orlando 54-44, angering Magic coach Steve Clifford.

"You can't come on the road and get smacked on the glass like that. There's got to be some physicality," he said.

"Too man hustle points, second-chance points," added Aaron Gordon, who had 13 rebounds and 10 points.

Khris Middleton scored 20 points for Milwaukee and Dante DiVincenzo added 12 points off the bench.

Evan Fournier had 26 points for the Magic, who had won four straight. Terrence Ross scored 23.

Ross hit a 3-pointer and was fouled by Eric Bledsoe with 50 seconds left to cut the Bucks' lead to 107-101, but he missed the free throw. Then Middleton put away the game by responding with a 3-pointer.

At 21-3, Milwaukee is tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA's best record.

The Bucks' first two shots were rejected by Magic forward Jonathan Isaac, the league's leading shot blocker. In all, Isaac recorded four blocks against four different players before the game was 8 1/2 minutes old. He finished with five blocks.

Despite the rough start, the Bucks surged to a 31-18 lead after a 14-0 run late in the first quarter, with forward Ersan Ilyasova sinking two 3-pointers. They led 52-40 at halftime.

Orlando shot just 29.5% from the field, including 14.3% from behind the 3-point line, in the first half.

"I think our defense, even though I didn't love the way we played tonight, our first-half defense kind of carried us through," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said.

The Magic, fueled by six 3-pointers in the third quarter, including three by Ross, drew within five points just before the end of the period.

But they couldn't get any closer.

TIP-INS

Magic: C Mo Bamba was helped to the locker room in the second quarter with a left knee contusion, but returned. . Played without C Nikola Vucevic (right lateral ankle sprain) for the ninth straight game. ... Just as the Magic reached .500 for the first time this season, they faced a brutal trio of games. After the Bucks (1st place, Eastern Conference), they have home games against the Lakers (1st place, Western Conference) and Houston (4th place, West).

Bucks: Entered Monday leading the league in points (121) and rebounds (51.8) per game. . Guard George Hill entered Monday leading the league in 3-point field-goal percentage (.516).... In attendance: California high school football coach Rob Mendez, who was born without arms and legs, accompanied by Packers linebacker Blake Martinez.

GYM CLOSED

The Bucks' being off Saturday and Sunday was a rare occurrence. "It was well placed for us. But, if we don't play well tonight, we think it's a terrible idea," Budenholzer joked before Monday's game. "I think we had good enforcement on a lockout day yesterday," he said of players staying away from the practice facility.

KNEED-ING ROSS

Ross shot 25 for 51 (49%) during the Magic's winning streak. "I think, one, he's healthy," Clifford said. "I think that the little knee injury that he had, it didn't prevent him from playing, but he wasn't explosive."

UP NEXT

Magic: Host the Lakers on Wednesday.

Bucks: Host the Pelicans on Wednesday.

Leaders

Orlando PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
E. Fournier 26 -2 2 4 1 0
T. Ross 23 1 1 4 0 0
Milwaukee PTS +/- AST REB ST BLK
G. Antetokounmpo 32 8 8 15 1 1
K. Middleton 20 -2 4 9 1 0

Team Comparison

ORL MIL
Points For 101 110
Field Goals 35/92-38% 43/92-47%
Three Pointers 10/31-32% 16/41-39%
Free Throws 21/26-81% 8/15-53%
Offensive Rebounds 9 10
Defensive Rebounds 35 44
Rebounds 54 64
Blocks 10 4
Steals 8 7
Turnovers 12 14
Points Scored Off Turnovers 22 13
Points in the Paint 36 46
Fast Break Points 25 13
Personal Fouls 18 19
Technical Fouls 0 1
Flagrant Fouls 0 0
Ejections 0 0

2019-20 Reg Season - MIL Leads Series 2-0

Date Result Away Pts Ldr Home Pts Ldr
Fri Nov 1 MIL 123 @ ORL 91 G. Antetokounmpo 29 E. Fournier 19
Mon Dec 9 ORL 101 @ MIL 110 E. Fournier 26 G. Antetokounmpo 32

Game Information

Stadium: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Attendance: 17,385
Game Time: 2:11