Antetokounmpo withstood the competition, defeating Orlando, and Milwaukee extended its six-game winning streak

In the first meeting of the 2022/23 season, the Magic were defeated by a 15-point margin on a rather strange evening. In the second moment, it was the Bucks’ turn to smile. The Milwaukee team defeated the Orlando team 118-114 in a hard-fought, competitive match that snapped a six-game winning streak for the Stags at Fiserv Forum.

Milwaukee improved to 21-7 (16-2 at home and 5-5 on the road), with Giannis Antetokounmpo again its leading scorer (37 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists), taking unsportsmanlike hits and issues with length and athleticism had by Jonathan Isaac, but in the end it’s about getting the job done and more. Damian Lillard had a “so and so” Performance (24 points, 5/17 shooting, 10/10 shooting, 5 rebounds, 8 assists), Middleton and Lopez were frugal in both their efforts and the balance sheet, the bench didn’t help, but the Bucks continue to chase the Celtics the top of the district.

Orlando fell to 16-11 (11-3 at home and 5-8 on the road), but it showed it’s no longer the…worst relative in the East. The Magic, like this season overall, were very competitive, they had a plurality, they are just not ready to “steal” the results on the courts from such good teams. They were tough, they were stubborn, they tried different defense styles, they believed in themselves from the first second to the last, they only made seven mistakes and together they took another step forward. Moe and Franz Wagner were great and top scorers for Jamal Mosley’s team.

The Bucks’ next opponent is the Knicks in two games in New York. The first will take place on Saturday afternoon (December 23rd) at 7:30 p.m. and the second on Christmas Day at 7:00 p.m. Greek hours both.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s account

He entered the game at an impressive pace. Drive, two boards, another drive, Lillard’s assist, a foul to make it 12-2, all within two minutes. At the end of the period he had 13/4/4, he had made 10 of his team’s 25 shots, he was storming. At the start of the second period, he repeatedly fought with Jonathan Isaac, who cut him twice at one point, but immediately afterwards threw him into the basket with an improbable nail. In the half he had 23/7/5 and 8/14 two-point shots, he missed two-three under the basket, but was cocky against a defense that couldn’t trick him.

At the start of the second half, he wore down his opponents, took shots, opened up more spaces, saw Beasley and Middleton find the open threes, and saw Bankero elbow him in the ribs when everything went wrong for Orlando. He didn’t let up, but made a nice score in the 45th minute to make it 107:97 and thus finally seal the victory for his team. It wasn’t his best night, not one of his best nights, but games like this help the Bucks head into a more difficult stretch where they have to play on the road far more often than at home and against superior opponents.

• 37 points
• 11/22 two points
• 0/3 threesomes
• 15/19 shots
• 10 rebounds
• 6 assists
• 2 blocks
• 5 errors
• 4 fouls
• +9 to +/-
• in 37:18

40-60 points on bat, 23-11 points on surprise, 21-43 points on substitute, 6-14 points on opponent’s errors, 15-13 points on second chances.

THE DODECALEPTA: 28-31, 59-56, 91-82, 118-114

MILWAUKEE BUCKS (Adrian Griffin): Middleton 14 (2 three-pointers, 4 rebounds, 3 assists), Antetokounmpo 37, Lopez 14 (2 three-pointers, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks), Beasley 8 (2 three-pointers, 5 rebounds, 2 assists), Lillard 24 (1/9 2-pointers, 4/8 3-pointers, 10/10 shots, 5 rebounds, 8 assists), Portis 6 (8 rebounds), Connaughton 8 (0/3 3-pointers), pointers, 8 rebounds, 2 assists), Jackson, Payne 2 (4 assists), Beauchamp 5 (1)

ORLANDO MAGIC (Jamal Mosley): Franz Wagner 29 (12/17 2-points, 1/6 3-points, 2/4 shots, 6 rebounds, 6 assists), Banchero 23 (3/12 2-points, 3/5 3- Pointers, 8/10 shots, 7 rebounds, 4 assists), Carter 4, Harris 14 (2 3-pointers, 5 assists), Black 1, Mo Wagner 21 (9/11 2-pointers, 1/4 3-pointers, 8 rebounds, 2 assists), Anthony 18 (6/11 2-pointers, 1/6 3-pointers, 3/3 shots, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals), Isaac 4 (4 rebounds, 3 blocks), Houston

Milwaukee Bucks team stats: 27/53 2-pointers, 11/37 3-pointers, 31/35 shots, 62 rebounds, 26 assists, 3 steals, 6 blocks, 13 turnovers, 22 fouls

Orlando Magic team stats: 37/66 2-pointers, 8/33 3-pointers, 16/23 shots, 55 rebounds, 26 assists, 6 steals, 9 blocks, 7 turnovers, 23 fouls