In an exciting back-and-forth final, the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Orlando Magic and moved into the NBA Cup semifinals with 114-109.

NBA.com Box Score

The turnovers really bothered Milwaukee in the opening stanza, allowing Orlando to quickly jump out to a seven-point lead. But at some point Giannis Antetokounmpo got his energy going and made both field goals from the ground and the stripe. He scored 11 points in the first quarter, paving the way to a 33-25 Bucks lead after one.

After his recent 23-point performance in Brooklyn, Bobby Portis once again provided a boost off the bench. At halftime his stats were 7/8 from the floor with 16 points and five rebounds. Orlando’s bench did just as well, however, with Mo Wagner and Anthony Black each scoring in double figures in the half. At the start of the third round, Milwaukee had a 60-59 lead.

After the Magic got off to a 7-0 start early in the second half, Milwaukee rebounded with a 16-2 run of their own. They were able to do this in large part thanks to the strong scoring output of Giannis, who kept picking up points left and right to create separation (but strangely, no assists). Entering the fourth round, the Bucks held an 80-72 lead.

Neither team could really separate themselves in the final quarter of regular time as the games were fairly even. It stayed that way until there was less than a minute left, and then Damian Lillard drove down the lane for two. Jalen Suggs then shot a 3-pointer that was too strong and went out of bounds. Damian Lillard then went to the line where he made two free throws. Suggs would then miss another 3PA, sending Antetokounmpo to the line. He put the finishing touches on the Bucks’ 114-109 victory, sending them to the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas.

Statistics that stood out

For the second game in a row, Bobby Portis had a big performance off the bench. He was out of sorts from the start and came with a boosted engine to do some damage. It slowed down as the game progressed, but 22 points off the bench is quite an impact. He also grabbed ten rebounds, securing a double-double. At a time when Bucks fans have expressed great dissatisfaction with him, he really stepped up his game tonight and put on a tremendous performance.

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