NBA: Magic cruise past short-handed Bucks to take season series

Paolo Banchero scored a game-high 33 points to lead the Orlando Magic to a commanding 130-91 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks in Milwaukee on Sunday night.

Jalen Suggs added 20 points for Orlando, which secured its fourth consecutive win. Desmond Bane contributed 18 points along with a game-high nine assists.

The Bucks suffered their fifth loss in six games, playing without key players Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf), Kevin Porter Jr. (knee), and Kyle Kuzma (back).

Bobby Portis led Milwaukee in scoring with 18 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds. With this performance, Portis made history by recording his 87th double-double off the bench, moving into second place in NBA history behind Detlef Schrempf (106), who played forward for four teams from 1985-2001.

Cam Thomas added 17 points and six assists for the Bucks, while Ryan Rollins scored 15 points and Jericho Sims contributed 10 points with seven rebounds.

Milwaukee struggled offensively from the start, shooting just 4 of 16 from the field and scoring only 15 points in the opening quarter compared to Orlando’s 25. Turnovers also plagued the Bucks, who committed nine in the first half and trailed 67-55 at halftime.

Orlando’s defense continued to dominate in the third quarter, limiting Milwaukee to just nine points in the first 10 minutes. The Magic shot over 60% from the field and extended their lead to 100-70 entering the fourth quarter.

The Bucks finished the game with 16 turnovers, while Orlando made 14 of 33 shots (42.4%) from beyond the arc.

With the win, the Magic captured the three-game season series 2-1, marking their first outright season series victory over Milwaukee since the 2011-12 season (4-0).

—Field Level Media/Reuters