Game in Review: Milwaukee Bucks v. Orlando Magic – April 1

Lottery-team match-ups just keep coming, but the Milwaukee Bucks down the Orlando Magic decisively in a high-flying contest tonight.

Starting Lineups – Milwaukee Bucks: Rashad Vaughn, Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker, Greg Monroe

Orlando Magic: Elfrid Payton, Victor Oladipo, Evan Fournier, Aaron Gordon, Dewayne Dedmon

On Wednesday evening, former Milwaukee Buck Brandon Knight made his infamous return to Milwaukee after being traded last season. This evening? It was former Milwaukee legends Ersan Ilyasova (unable to play due to collarbone problems) and Brandon Jennings, the artist formerly known as BJ3 *sobs at memories*. That would be about it for unique undercurrents behind tonight’s game, though of course Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker made up a fun show to watch as usual.

Another fun thing to watch? Rashad Vaughn getting his first NBA start as Jerryd Bayless was sidelined due to knee issues.

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The first six minutes of play was largely skewed towards Milwaukee’s athleticism and ability to maintain a fluid offense, but Evan Fournier was an instant spark of offense for Orlando. There was a string of possessions that saw him utilizing a string of screens, thus losing his man (in the form of Jabari Parker) before shooting back towards to the hoop for a little-contested attempt.

That type of methodological play didn’t last forever, however, and the Bucks had the chance to do what they do best: Get out and run at high-speed in transition at a woefully unprepared defense. I mean, look what Giannis got to do:

Without a doubt, though, the most impressive guy had to be Greg Monroe taking advantage of a weak Orlando interior defense. Not only did he go a perfect 7-7, but double teams sent his way freed up exterior shooting in a major way. The Bucks ended the first up 31-24.

Nikola Vucevic was not ready to allow things to go solely Milwaukee’s way, and he put a stamp on the second coming off the bench (as he has done for a stretch of games now). He’s a very crafty scorer with a bit more in the way of range than say Monroe, but the speed of his moves just weren’t countered by Miles Plumlee as Vucevic worked his way to a 15 point first half.

Tyler Ennis was just about ready to step-up to the plate in tearing off a solo seven-point streak including a pretty three. Of course, in the spirit of weird lineups in trying to find something that works, Greivis Vasquez got the opportunity to stick in with the starters to close out the quarter. He’d miss some jumpers as he is expected to do, and a drought would result in a slimmer 58-57 lead at the half.

Jabari got up, though:

Pretty!

During the break, both Scott Skiles and Jason Kidd must’ve gone in and told their teams to pretty much give up setting up anything more than bare-minimum defensive effort. Orlando began making jumpers after the Bucks lackadaisically got back on D, and for a stretch it looked to be a miracle that the Bucks were scoring in the forms that they were.

Luckily, Jabari once again atoned for the team’s sins:

In fact, the starters as a whole put together some impressive stat-lines: Giannis grabbed yet another triple-double with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists; Jabari obviously brought the scoring with 26 points and seven rebounds; Khris contributed a much-needed 18 points alongside five steals; and Rashad? Well, if four points on 2-6 shooting doesn’t scream something to you, then I’m not sure what to tell you.

Both teams would put together near 30-point quarter performances, but it was the Magic who got a bit of the upper hand on their way to a 85-84 lead heading into the final frame.

The final score wouldn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things; instead, would Giannis be able to secure a few more rebounds to cement a triple-double stat-line?

If the team was in on the job of getting loose balls up for Giannis to scoop up, they did a damn fine job of playing their part. Greivis came back in and subsequently bricked another shot or two, and anything outside the paint was having trouble going down.

But you know what? He got that triple-double at the ~2:00 mark to finalize a night that ebbed and flowed largely on the back of his effort. Yay Giannis!

Perhaps it was his example that sparked some crucial play from a variety of guys in the final minute to secure a slim margin of victory. The Magic would turn it over on the next possession, but Middleton would get a bit too excited and launch the ball directly out-of-bounds uncontested. Orlando would grab the lead right back, and it would come down to the wire.

Jabari Parker attacked the rim without fear, converting a contested lay-in to put the score at 111-110. Tyler Ennis would come up huge with free-throws, and the Bucks secure an (unwanted?) win, 113-110

If you’re looking to get a chance at a feeling of Schadenfreude, we invite you to join us here once again Sunday evening when the threadbare Chicago Bulls come to town!