With the Milwaukee Bucks in peril of a quarterfinal loss within the NBA Cup, their All-Star guard declared the ultimate two minutes had been Dame Time.
Lillard had 11 factors within the remaining 2:01 of Milwaukee’s 114-109 win over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday evening. He hit six free throws, made a go-ahead dunk with 32 seconds to go and hit a game-tying three-pointer when Orlando was threatening to tug away late.
The Bucks improved their NBA Cup document to 5-0 and superior to face the winner of Wednesday’s recreation between the New York Knicks and the Atlanta Hawks. Final yr, additionally they superior to the semifinals, however fell to the Indiana Pacers in Las Vegas.
The shorthanded Orlando Magic battled onerous and stayed within the recreation with offensive rebounds, grabbing 15 offensive boards and outrebounding the Bucks total, 46-37. They took a late three-point lead after Wendell Carter grabbed a Jalen Suggs miss, acquired fouled and sank each free throws.
However within the remaining minute, the rebounding dominance didn’t matter, as a result of Lillard didn’t miss. He was 2-for-2 from the sector and 6-for-6 from the foul line. The Magic, enjoying with out Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, merely couldn’t hold with the Bucks, particularly taking pictures 6-for-27 from three-point vary.
Milwaukee traded for Lillard and employed Doc Rivers to teach to be able to win a title. Even at 13-12, they’re nonetheless alive for an NBA Cup title at the least.
