How did the Bucks superstar fare against the Magic? (January 15)

Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo had another stellar outing against the Orlando Magic in their home opener on Wednesday, helping his team cruise to a 122-93 victory.

The two-time league MVP finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and a steal in just three quarters of action as he watched the Bucks extend their dominance over the Magic this season.

Led by All-Stars Damian Lillard and Antetokounmpo, the Bucks took the game right from the start, building a 34-16 advantage in the first 12 minutes and expanding it to a 21-point cushion, 62-41, at halftime. They were never threatened after that.

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s stats tonight against the Orlando Magic

Lillard top-scored for Milwaukee in the win with 30 points, on 3-of-3 shooting from deep, to go along with five rebounds and four assists. He scored 18 of his total points in their big first-half run. Bobby Portis and Khris Middleton, meanwhile, each had 14 points.

For the Magic, All-Star forward Paolo Banchero led the way with 22 points, followed by Trevelin Queen with 13 points and Wendell Carter Jr. with 12.

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Magic saw their record improve to 22-17 with the win, which places them currently in fifth place in the Eastern Conference. They next play on Friday against the Toronto Raptors.

Giannis Antetokounmpo says playing the Orlando Magic challenges him

While they dominated Orlando in their game on Wednesday, Giannis Antetokounmpo said he looks forward to facing the Magic every time because he is challenged to be at his best.

The ‘Greek Freak’ shared this with members of the media after their 109-106 win against the Magic on Friday, highlighting that in most cases there are no easy wins against the Magic because they play for 48 minutes and persist until the final buzzer sounds.

Antetokounmpo said (via Sports Illustrated):

“When they play a team that plays hard for 48 minutes, they’ve had the most comeback wins in the NBA, recently they came back with 22 minutes with about six minutes left or something like that, kind of crazy.

“You know we have to come to that game, you have to have that mindset, you have to play for 48 minutes, it’s going to be a very, very physical game. They play very, very big.”

The win on Wednesday was the third in as many games for the Bucks over the Magic this season. However, their previous two wins were only won by an average margin of four points.

The teams have one more game to play on March 8 at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.