Orlando Magic Stun Milwaukee Bucks in Game 1
The No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks were stunned by the Orlando Magic in their playoff opener on Tuesday.
The Magic beat the Bucks 112 – 110 on the back of a remarkable Nikola Vucevic performance.
Vucevic finished the game with 35 points, a career-high figure in the playoffs. As well as that, he had 14 rebounds, outperforming Giannis Antetokounmpo in both metrics.
For Giannis, it was his first game in a week and his and the Bucks’ bubble sloppiness continued. Milwaukee entered the playoffs as the favorites to win the NBA championship. If they want to win their first title since 1971, they’ll have to address their inconsistency.Â
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Orlando was without starting forward Aaron Gordon as well as Jonathan Isaac through injury. In their place, Gary Clark defended Giannis, and finished with 15 points and 6 rebounds.
Terence Ross scored 18 and DJ Augustin had 11 points and 11 assists. Antetokounmpo finished with 31 points, 17 rebounds and 7 assists, but ultimately was marshalled well by the Magic defence.
He was forced to settle for jump shots against the team that Milwaukee swept by a 17-point average in the regular season. He still led the Bucks in points, assists and rebounds, although it wasn’t enough. Orlando held a 13 point lead entering the fourth quarter.
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Before Tuesday, it had been eight years since a No.8 seed beat a No.1 seed in the playoffs. With the Bucks loss and the Blazers beating the Lakers, it happened twice in one night. A No.1 seed has now defeated a No.8 seed seven times in NBA history – twice in the bubble.
The Bucks, who finished 3 – 5 in the seeding games, are clearly struggling to adjust. Their first chance to put it right is on Thursday in Game 2 of the series.
