Magic Struggle to Beat Milwaukee, Gain Homecourt Advantage

Whether the Milwaukee Bucks came in fearing the beard or not, one thing was certain, after a shining start and a sloppy ending, the Magic left the building with a victory of 78-72 over the Bucks and homecourt advantage in the playoffs’ first round.

“It was a very frustrating night offensively,” Van Gundy said. “We fought hard, it was I’m sure hard to watch, I know it was for me. I know it was for our players even, it was a frustrating night. But, they hung in there and got the win and so at this point that’s all that matters and we’ll move on to tomorrow.”

After coming off a two game loss, it was time to put things in perspective on Tuesday night at the Amway center. With the playoffs around the corner, the team needed a boost, and that they got by opening the game with a 14 point lead after Milwaukee missed it’s first eight shots of the game. But overall, even the fans were disappointed with the Orlando team, even booing the team in the fourth quarter.

First quarter opened with a great three pointer from Hedo Turkoglu. Right behind came Bass and Nelson to add another 4 points to the scoreboard. After Richardson scored another two points to make it 14-0, it was time for Milwaukee to call time out and get their head in the game. Drew Gooden scored the first two of the night for the Bucks but it wasn’t too long before the Magic took control back and the quarter ended with the Magic in the lead by 12 points.

The Bucks came out in the second quarter with a little bit more of a strategy, and the Magic’s shooting percentage started dropping. With 3 minutes left, John Salmons made a 23-foot three-point jumper that brought the difference to just eight points. After Van Gundy called time out, Orlando came back and closed the half 42-33.

Things didn’t catch fire until mid-third when John Salmons and Carlos Delfino paired up with the intention of leaving the deficit in the dust. With four minutes left in quarter, only four points separated the teams on the scoreboard. The Magic did well to fend off the tie but not with a much-needed wake up call.  Barely making it, they closed the quarter ahead one more time but by only two points.

The final leg of the game started with Magic fans shaking their heads in disbelief. With nine minutes left, Brandon Jennings tied the game for the Bucks for the first time. Point by point both teams battled in the Amway court. Jason Richardson would score just to turn around and see Drew Gooden doing the same for Milwaukee. Finally Jameer Nelson hit a 21-foot jumper with the help of Howard that broke the 72-all score just to be followed by Turkoglu with 40 seconds left to end the game.

The victory and the Atlanta Hawks’ loss to the San Antonio Spurs, secured the Eastern Conference’s fourth spot and ensured that the Magic will open the playoffs with two home games.

The question remains? Was it luck? If you look at the scoreboard you can say the best team won but when checking the stats you might second-guess yourself. The Magic turned the ball over 21 times, hit just 24 of their 36 foul shots and went 2-for-21 from the 3-point range.

“You can’t play like this, and we know that,” Van Gundy said.  “Hopefully we won’t because you’re not going to win a playoff game playing like that.”

They play the Bobcats tonight followed by two days of rest to gear up for the playoffs.

By: Fernanda Barros