Bucks 118, Magic 108: Eric Bledsoe takes lead in team performance worthy of many accolades

ORLANDO, Fla. - During his media session before Saturday's game, Orlando Magic coach Steve Clifford heaped praise on the Milwaukee Bucks. He lauded their addition of Brook Lopez, the way the roster fit together, their defense and their depth.

On that last point, he went through the mental exercise of trying to rank the different threats the Bucks can throw at you. He started with Giannis Antetokounmpo followed by Khris Middleton then mentioned Eric Bledsoe before deciding that was enough to illustrate the difficulty of facing a team like the Bucks.

If he went through that exercise after the game, Clifford might have adjusted Bledsoe's spot in the pecking order, but all of his other areas of high praise came to pass as the Bucks closed out the Magic late for a 118-108 victory Saturday night at Amway Center.

BOX SCORE:Bucks 118, Magic 108

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Bledsoe picked up where he left off Wednesday night in Memphis, coming up with big plays when the Bucks needed them on the way to a season-high 30-point performance on 12-of-14 shooting to help lift the Bucks to their fourth win in a row.

“When you are 12 of 14 it’s hard to argue," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. "He made some threes, he got to the basket, he was aggressive. He did a little bit of everything. He got to the free-throw line on the first play of the game. He is in a really good place; he is playing really well right now and I think he is doing a lot for us defensively. It’s great to see him playing so well.”

After Milwaukee held the Magic at arm's length throughout the first half, Orlando counterpunched in the third quarter behind center Nikola Vucevic, who finished with a team-high 27 points. With a greater attacking mentality, the Magic chipped away at what had been a Milwaukee lead as large as 19 points. Moments into the fourth quarter, though, the margin was down to just two.

That's when Bledsoe, who was already in the midst of his strong effort, kicked into high gear. After a tip-in by Antetokounmpo, Bledsoe deposited a three-pointer and a midrange jumper. He kept the buckets rolling, scoring 12 of his 30 points in the final period.

“Bled has been terrific," Malcolm Brogdon said. "That’s really all I can say. Making shots, making big plays, willing to take big shots. We’re lethal when he’s playing at that level.”

Bledsoe wasn't alone among Milwaukee's standouts as the team's depth shone through yet again.

Antetokounmpo performed well throughout the game, finishing with 25 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. Brogdon continued his consistent stretch of scoring, slashing his way into the paint for 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and D.J. Wilson added 8 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.

Lopez made his presence known especially on the defensive end, staging his own personal block party, recording six blocks to go with eight points.

“We were able to build a 19-point lead at one point and I thought it was Brook’s defense in the paint, him blocking shots, starting the fast break and making them hesitate," Budenholzer said. "His presence in the paint is huge.”

Middleton took a while, but he made his way into that group of standout performances. He struggled with his shot for much of the night, opening 0 for 4 from the floor.

But he kept at it and played a major role in closing out the win. With Milwaukee's lead back down to four with under four minutes left, he backed Vucevic out and splashed a three-pointer on him from the top of the key. On the next possession, he snaked a pass from the baseline through multiple defenders to Bledsoe on the wing for a drive and floater that bounced in.

“I was surprised," Bledsoe said. "Khris is a great passer, man, but I was surprised he got that one through there. But I’ll take it.”

Middleton followed those plays with a pass to Brogdon for a layup then a midrange jumper to put the margin at 11 with under two minutes to go, essentially putting away the win.

With the win, the Bucks closed out a stretch of five road games in six contests with a 5-1 record, with the lone blemish coming in a loss at the Washington Wizards with Antetokounmpo out due to injury. They now head home for a pair of games spread out over five days.

"It's a good win for us on the road and now we get to go home for a week," Budenholzer said.