Home Sports NBA Cup: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard lead Bucks in thriller past shorthanded Magic to semifinals

NBA Cup: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard lead Bucks in thriller past shorthanded Magic to semifinals

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NBA Cup: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Damian Lillard lead Bucks in thriller past shorthanded Magic to semifinals

The shorthanded Magic played Tuesday night.

But in the end, the firepower of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard proved too much to overcome. The All-Star Bucks duo rallied Milwaukee from an early deficit and then held off the Magic late for a 114-109 victory over Orlando in the first game of the NBA Cup quarterfinals.

Milwaukee overcame an 18-point fourth quarter from Jalen Suggs that helped give Orlando a 107-106 lead with 40.1 seconds remaining. But Lillard scored nine points in the final 52 seconds to help thwart Orlando’s upset.

With the win, the Bucks advance to the semifinal round in Las Vegas, where they will face the winner between the New York Knicks and the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. A Magic team that plays without its two best players is eliminated from the NBA Cup.

The Magic earned their spot in the NBA Cup knockout round despite playing 21 of their previous 26 games without All-Star forward Paolo Banchero, who has been sidelined since Oct. 30 with a torn right knee. the oblique Then, when they reached Tuesday’s knockout round, they played without forward Franz Wagner, who suffered his own oblique tear in Friday’s loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

For the Magic, that meant a starting lineup of Jalen Suggs, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Goga Bitadze, Wendell Carter Jr. and Tristan da Silva. With strong bench support from Moritz Wagner and Anthony Black, the Magic opened up a 33-25 lead and kept Orlando competitive throughout.

But the two best players on the court suited up for the Bucks and ultimately led Milwaukee to victory. Antetokounmpo and Lillard combined to score 29 straight Bucks points during a stretch that stretched from midway through the second quarter to the final two minutes of the third. Milwaukee’s defense clamped down in a third quarter that the Bucks won, 20-13, to take an 80-72 lead into the fourth quarter.

But the Magic wasn’t done. They tied the game multiple times in the fourth quarter before taking a 102-101 lead in the final three minutes on a shot by Suggs. Wendell Carter Jr.’s free throws put Orlando up 106-103 with 1:13 left.

But Lillard responded with a three-pointer to tie the game at 106.

He then responded to Black’s free throw with a layup to retake the lead at 108-107.

Lillard added four free throws in the final nine seconds to ice the Bucks’ game.

Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 37 points, seven rebounds, two steals and four blocks. Lillard added 28 points and nine assists while making all 10 of his free throws. He scored 13 in the back-and-forth fourth quarter, including 11 of Milwaukee’s final 13 points.

Bobby Portis Jr. was great off the bench, with 22 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. The Bucks overcame a sloppy ball-handling night by turning the ball over 16 times.

Suggs led the Magic with 32 points, nine rebounds and four steals. Black scored 17 and Wagner added 13 points and three rebounds off the bench.

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