Bucks edge Magic, make NBA Cup semis

LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks edged the depleted but determined Orlando Magic, 114-109, to reach the National Basketball Association (NBA) Cup semifinals on Tuesday as Oklahoma City cruised past Dallas.

Antetokounmpo scored 37 points with seven rebounds and four blocked shots for the Bucks, who reached the semifinals of the in-season tournament for the second year in a row and will face either the New York Knicks or Atlanta Hawks for a place in the final.

Damian Lillard scored 15 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter and handed out nine assists for the Bucks, who had all they could handle from Orlando despite the absence of injured Magic stars Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner.

Lillard threw down a dunk to put the Bucks up 108-107 with 32.6 seconds remaining, and after Orlando’s Jalen Suggs missed a three-pointer, Lillard drilled a pair of free-throws to push the Bucks’ lead to three points with 9.1 seconds left.

Antetokounmpo and Lillard each added a pair of free throws in the final seconds to seal the hard-fought victory.

“We fought for this one,” said Lillard, who said the Bucks would be aiming to improve on their performance last year in the inaugural edition of the event when they head to Las Vegas for the final stage.

“We didn’t have the greatest experience there last year,” he said.

“So, I think all of us are thinking (about) going back and finishing what we started last year and doing it right this time.”

Suggs scored a career-high 32 points and pulled down nine rebounds for the Magic, who got off to an aggressive start on the way to a 33-25 lead after one quarter.

Suggs had three of the Magic’s seven steals in the first period as Orlando kept the Bucks off-balance.

Milwaukee recovered to lead 60-59 at half time, and after four lead changes in the third quarter, the Bucks took an 80-72 lead into the final period.

They would swap the lead four more times before the Bucks finally put it away.