MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 26 points, Khris Middleton added 22 and the Milwaukee Bucks turned up their defensive intensity after a porous first quarter to beat the Orlando Magic 110-103 on Wednesday night.
John Henson picked up his fifth double-double of the year with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Bucks, who handed the Magic their sixth straight loss and 15th in their last 16.
Antetokounmpo was a matchup problem all night around the rim because of his length and athleticism. The 6-foot-11 forward backed down Aaron Gordon in the post, then used a spin move to drive for a layup on a three-point play for a 66-57 lead with 7:55 left in the third.
After an empty Orlando possession, Antetokounmpo took a feed along the baseline from Eric Bledsoe for an uncontested dunk. The Magic called timeout but it did not help.
Leading by 20 to start the fourth quarter, coach Jason Kidd was able to get some rest for Antetokounmpo and Bledsoe (15 points) with the Golden State Warriors visiting Milwaukee on Friday night.
Evan Fournier had 21 points to lead Orlando, which cut the deficit to single digits during the closing minutes with reserves on the floor.
Gordon had 11 points but was just 4 of 18 from the field in 30 minutes, including a stretch of 12 straight missed shots in the second and third quarters. He was averaging 24.8 points over his previous five games.
After shooting 52 percent in the first quarter, Orlando tailed off to 26 percent (6 of 23) in the second and trailed 53-46 at halftime.
TIP-INS
Magic: A stretch of losing has led to questions from some fans about whether Orlando should be tanking for a high draft pick. Coach Frank Vogel wants no part of that discussion. "That's not a word I digest. I'm trying to build a winning culture, winning habits. And that's my only focus," Vogel said before the game.
Bucks: F Jabari Parker is on target to return from a left knee injury the week before the All-Star break. Kidd said Parker was doing great and is about a month away from playing. ... Henson had an active night , including eight points and eight rebounds in the first half.
UP NEXT
Magic: Wrap up a three-game trip with a visit to the Washington Wizards on Friday.
Bucks: Reach the midpoint of the season by hosting Golden State on Friday.
LATE TUESDAY
Mavericks beat Magic 114-99, stop 3-game slide
DALLAS — Dennis Smith Jr. and Yogi Ferrell helped set the pace for the Dallas Mavericks in their 114-99 win over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.
It started with rebounding.
The 6-foot Ferrell led the team with eight boards, the 6-3 Smith had seven and the Mavericks used that spark to get offense going the other way.
"Me and Yogi run (after rebounding)," Smith said. "We find each other on the break pretty well, and when we can get into the paint it opens up the floor for everybody."
Ferrell said it was a result of the rest of the team boxing out, and he just benefited by grabbing the ball.
"Those guys do the hard part. We do the easy part and get boards," Ferrell said. "When we do that it gets our break started a lot quicker."
It also led to a balanced scoring output for Dallas.
Dirk Nowitzki and Smith each scored 20 points as the Mavericks stopped a three-game slide. Wesley Matthews had 16 points for Dallas, which got its first win since Dec. 31 against Oklahoma City.
Harrison Barnes and Ferrell scored 15 apiece, while J.J. Barea had 12 assists and eight points.
"Yogi came in and really changed the game," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. "His impact on the offensive and defensive ends — his energy was great. In the first half, he was the one guy who was really battling on the boards for us, the shortest guy out there."
Carlisle earned his 708th career win, moving past John MacLeod for 17th in NBA history. Next up is Gene Shue with 784.
Aaron Gordon scored 19 points for Orlando, which has lost five in a row. D.J. Augustin had 18 points, and Marreese Speights finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Magic have allowed at least 100 points in four of their last five games and have lost 14 of 15.
"They've just got to do better," coach Frank Vogel said. "We've got to figure that out."
The Magic led 48-43 at halftime, but Nowitzki and Smith helped the Mavericks rally with 15 points apiece in the second half.
With his team leading 66-64 and 4:04 remaining in the third quarter, Ferrell made a pull-up jumper and Barnes followed with another jump shot. The Mavs carried an 82-75 lead into the fourth.
"We didn't stick with the same energy that we had in the first half," Augustin said. "We didn't come out and execute like we were supposed to, like we did in the first half, and it kind of fell apart at the end."
The Magic pulled within four in the final period before the Mavericks closed the game with a 14-3 run over the final four minutes.
Dallas shot 51.8 percent from the floor. Orlando shot 45.6 percent and had 13 turnovers in a sloppy offensive performance.