3 takeaways from Milwaukee Bucks’ quality win over the Orlando Magic

DeMarcus Cousins and Wesley Matthews provided a massive boost off of the Milwaukee Bucks’ bench in the win over Orlando Magic

The Bucks have a thing for finding diamonds in the rough. This season, the team has picked up two players that were previously out of the league in DeMarcus Cousins and Wesley Matthews, both of which were signed to non-guaranteed deals. These two have already had their share of signature moments with the team, and they kept the ball rolling last night with a pair of stellar efforts off the bench in the win over Orlando.

Cousins was particularly fantastic in this matchup, especially during the third quarter. With things tied up at 74 apiece with 5:14 left in the period, the big man made a layup while getting fouled to kickstart what quickly turned into a dominant quarter for him. With the Magic going on a run in the period and even taking the lead, Cousins scored 13 points in the quarter to help push Milwaukee’s lead back to double digits when the buzzer rang. Whether it was due to his scoring, rebounding, or sheer toughness, he gave the team a massive lift when it seemed like the Magic had gained all of the momentum. Those big 12 minutes helped Cousins finish with 15 points and five boards in his 16 minutes of playing time. After some initial growing pains, Cousins now looks like a natural with the Milwaukee Bucks as their backup center.

As for Matthews, he also chipped in double-digit points with 11 for the game, shooting 3-of-5 on 3-pointers while knocking down two free throws. In addition to his red-hot shooting, Matthews helped tremendously on the defensive end, which is nothing new, but the 3-and-D veteran also showed off his facilitating by finding none other than Cousins with a crafty behind-the-back pass.

Throughout his 22-minutes of action, Matthews finished as a team-high +19 for the game. While that system can be flawed when judging players, there is no denying that the swingman has had a positive impact on the Bucks on both ends during the first few games this season. The same goes for Cousins, who has given Milwaukee valuable minutes since coming aboard. Safe to say that the Cousins-Matthews tandem has been a welcoming one for the defending champs.