Magic-Bucks Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Feb 02 2013 1:52AM

The Milwaukee Bucks have cooled off this week, but a visit from an injury-plagued opponent could help them get back in the win column.

The Bucks appear to have a good chance to end their string of seven straight losses to the Orlando Magic on Saturday night.

Milwaukee (24-21) won eight of its first 11 under interim coach Jim Boylan, but it has since sputtered offensively in back-to-back losses. After falling 104-88 to visiting Chicago on Wednesday, the Bucks were a little more competitive Friday but the result was the same.

They led for much of the first three quarters at New York before the Knicks pulled away in the final period to win 96-86. Ersan Ilyasova had a team-best 19 points, but Milwaukee totaled 13 in the fourth quarter and fell to 1-11 when shooting under 40.0 percent from the field.

"For us offensively, we just kind of hit a wall there. We couldn't score enough points," Boylan said. "We were searching for offense pretty much the whole second half.

"We only had 20 points in the third quarter and we've been a pretty good third-quarter team coming out of the locker room. But tonight for whatever reason, we just didn't have enough."

Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis combined to miss 26 of 38 shots. Jennings, who had 14 points on a 5-of-18 performance, was 6 for 18 in Wednesday's defeat.

Ellis, who had 16 points Friday, is shooting 34.8 percent over his last four games.

Although it's been more than two years since the Bucks last beat Orlando, this is the teams' first meeting this season, and the Magic (14-32) have dropped eight straight and 19 of 21 overall. They played their third straight game without leading scorer Arron Afflalo and the first in a long stretch without Glen Davis on Friday, losing 97-84 at Boston.

Point guard Jameer Nelson suffered a bruised left forearm in that defeat and had to sit out the second half. Nelson, producing 14.9 points and 7.2 assists per game, said he'll have to see how feels Saturday.

Afflalo, averaging 16.7 points, is dealing with a strained calf and his status is unknown for this game, while Davis is out for the season after breaking his left foot Wednesday at New York. The sixth-year forward was averaging career highs of 15.1 points and 7.2 rebounds.

"It's part of basketball and we'll continue to deal with it," coach Jacque Vaughn said. "It means other guys have to fill in and fill roles and we'll keep at it."

Three of Orlando's top four scorers from last season's four-game sweep of the Bucks are on other teams, and the one still around - Hedo Turkoglu - has seen limited action in three games since returning from a hand injury. The Magic's two wins in Milwaukee in 2011-12 came by a combined eight points.

After their difficult shooting night, Ellis and Jennings should play key roles as the Bucks attempt to end their struggles against Orlando. Ellis has scored 30 points or more in three of his last four matchups with the Magic, but has yet to face them while in a Milwaukee uniform.

Jennings is 7 of 43 (16.3 percent) from 3-point range in his last six versus Orlando, but he's 21 of 43 (48.8 percent) in his last six games overall.

Ellis leads Bucks past Magic 107-98

Posted Feb 03 2013 2:45AM

MILWAUKEE (AP) Monta Ellis' defense helped the Milwaukee Bucks to a 107-98 win over the reeling Orlando Magic on Saturday.

Ellis scored 21 points and had 11 assists for the Bucks, who were playing their fourth game in five nights. Ellis' stifling defense helped keep Orlando guard J.J. Redick in check.

The Magic dropped their ninth in a row.

Redick made just five of 16 shots from the field and only two of nine from 3-point range.

"The defense that Monta Ellis played tonight on J.J. Redick was as good as you'll see all year," Bucks coach Jim Boylan said.

"For the entire time he was out there, Monta was just totally focused defensively. When he's playing like that, he can guard just about anybody. I just loved the way he was playing, the energy he had on both ends of the floor."

Brandon Jennings had 20 points and Larry Sanders had 17 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots for Milwaukee. Ersan Ilyasova added 16 points and eight rebounds. Mike Dunleavy scored 11 points, hitting three of four 3-pointers.

"Everybody moved the ball well. I thought we just had a nice little rhythm going," Boylan said.

"Sometimes when we play with that kind of ease, we can get a little distracted and lose a little focus and we did on a couple of occasions."

Sanders' performance also earned praise from Boylan.

"We're trying to get Larry to understand that if he just dives to the rim, good things are going to happen for him," he said. "Tonight he did that and he was rewarded for that. When he's active like that and blocking shots, he's a game changer."

Sanders said he expected a physical game.

"I was just trying to stay close to that rim. I knew their bigs were going to be real physical and have a lot of energy. I just tried to match it," he said.

Nikola Vucevic had 20 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Orlando, and Maurice Harkless had 19 points and 14 rebounds, both career highs.

"(Harkless) has done a great job of continuing to work on his game and listen and apply the things that are going to make him a really good player in this league," Orlando coach Jacque Vaughn said.

Harkless said he felt Orlando "did a good job competing," despite falling behind by double digits at various times in the game.

"Unfortunately, we didn't come out with the win, but I think we showed what we can do," Harkless said.

The Bucks held on after a late run from the Magic.

The Bucks led 101-86 before Orlando went on a 10-0 run, capped by Redick's 3-pointer from the top of the key with less than a minute left. Ellis hit a pair of free throws to give the Bucks a 103-96 lead. Harkless made a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 103-98. Ellis then added two more foul shots, extending the Bucks lead to seven.

Sanders sealed the win with two free throws.

"We just closed the game out and made shots when we needed to make them. We simply knocked down free throws down the stretch," Ellis said.

Vaughn said he saw a number of positives for his team, despite the loss. All 11 available players for the Magic played.

"This group continues to show themselves. We played everybody available tonight, and we needed it," he said. "We got a lot of contributions. The competitive nature from every guy that stepped on the floor was great to see."

The Bucks scored more than 100 points after managing fewer than 90 points its two previous games, scoring 86 against New York on Friday, and 88 against Chicago on Wednesday.

Playing its fourth game in five nights, Milwaukee began pulling away in the third quarter after the Magic had taken a lead. Despite missing four consecutive free throws to open the period, Orlando grabbed a 55-54 lead on Redick's reverse layup with 8:48 remaining.

The Magic held a 61-60 lead before the Bucks went on a 19-6 run to end the quarter. A key point in the run occurred when Orlando's Kyle O'Quinn missed a dunk. On the ensuing possession, Ilyasova made a 3-pointer, giving the Bucks a 75-65 lead.

The Bucks built an 11-point lead midway through the second quarter on a jump shot by Beno Udrih, but a 12-4 run by Orlando cut the lead to 46-43 with 3 minutes remaining. Milwaukee held on for a 52-48 lead at halftime.

Notes: Magic rookie forward Andrew Nicholson, who recorded the first double-double of his career Friday night against Boston, got his second consecutive start in place of injured Glen Davis, who underwent surgery Friday on his fractured left foot and is expected to miss eight to 12 weeks. ... Magic guard Jameer Nelson didn't play against the Bucks after injuring his forearm in Friday night's game. E'Twaun Moore replaced him in the starting lineup. Arron Afflalo also sat out for Orlando, missing his fourth consecutive game with a strained left calf. ... The Bucks wore replica green uniforms from the 1995-96 season. ... The Bucks committed two fouls in the first 5 seconds of the game. ... Sanders had a blocked shot for the 32nd consecutive game, extending his league-best mark.

Notebook: Bucks 107, Magic 98

Rick Braun, For NBA.com
Posted Sun Feb 03, 2013 12:29 AM - Updated Sun Feb 03, 2013 12:29 AM

THE FACTS: Monta Ellis scored 21 points, dished out 11 assists and hounded J.J. Redick on the defensive end, leading the Milwaukee Bucks to a 107-98 victory over the Orlando Magic Saturday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.

Ellis keyed a third-quarter rally with two driving layups after the Magic had taken a 55-54 lead, then helped seal the game with four free throws in the final 33 seconds as the Bucks improved to 25-21. Brandon Jennings added 20 points and five assists and Larry Sanders had 17 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots.

Center Nikola Vucevic led the shorthanded Magic with 20 points, and rookie forward Maurice Harkless added a career-high 19 points, but Orlando suffered its ninth straight loss and 20th in 22 games to drop to 14-33.

QUOTABLE: "The defense that Monta Ellis played tonight on J.J. Redick was as good as you'll see all year. For the entire time he was out there, Monta was totally focused defensively. When he's playing like that and focused, he can guard just about anybody, and tonight he did just an unbelievable job on J.J."

-- Bucks coach Jim Boylan after Ellis held Redick to 5-for-16 shooting

THE STAT: The Magic outrebounded the Bucks, 52-42, and had more assists (32-26), but the Bucks scored 12 more points from beyond the arc, making 9-for-24 to just 5-for-19 for the Magic. That was the only area the Bucks had a notable advantage.

TURNING POINT: Orlando hung around most of the night, and actually took a one-point lead at three different times in the third quarter. But a 17-footer by Luc Richard Mbah a Moute started a 17-4 run to give the Bucks a 77-65 lead with 2:13 left in the third and the Magic never got closer than five the rest of the way.

QUOTABLE II: "We had to get this one, for sure, to keep a cushion of four games over .500. Now we've got two tough ones out West and then come home for three before the break."

-- Bucks forward Mike Dunleavy on having to beat the reeling Magic

HOT: Rookie Andrew Nicholson started his second game in place of injured Glen Davis and made all three shots he took. He had a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds Friday night against Boston.

NOT: Starting guards Redick (5-for-16) and E'Twaun Moore (3-for-14) combined to go 8-for-30 (26.7 percent).

GOOD MOVE: When the Magic pulled within 87-80 on Vucevic's jumper with 6:25 left, Boylan called time out. The Bucks responded with a wide-open 3-pointer by Dunleavy to start a 9-0 run that put the game away.

ROOKIE WATCH: Harkless set career-highs with 19 points and 14 rebounds and 42 minutes. That marked just his third time in double-digit points and his first time with double-digit rebounds.

NOTABLE: Jameer Nelson missed the game for the Magic with a bad bruise on his left forearm after a collision Friday night with Boston's Paul Pierce. The Magic already was without leading scorer Aaron Afflalo (calf strain) and forward Davis, who broke his left foot Wednesday at New York. ... Sanders' six blocks extended his streak to 32 games with a blocked shot, the longest such active streak in the league this season. ... Ersan Ilyasova finished with 16 points and eight rebounds. His two 3-pointers give him at least two in the last eight games, the longest such streak by a Bucks player since Charlie Bell had eight straight in the 2005-'06 season.

UP NEXT: For the Magic, Monday @ Philadelphia, Wednesday vs. Los Angeles Clippers, Friday @ Cleveland. For the Bucks, Tuesday @ Denver, Wednesday @ Utah, Saturday vs. Detroit.

• Magic: Afflalo, Harrington
• Bucks: Lamb, Przybilla

• Magic: --
• Bucks: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 1

• Arena: BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee, WI
• Officials: #8 Marc Davis, #68 Marat Kogut, #35 Kane Fitzgerald
• Attendance: 14321
• Duration: 2:09