The Orlando Magic showed a resilience down the stretch that had been missing for much of the season Saturday night as they pulled out a 97-90 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Tobias Harris scored 23 points and pulled down 10 rebounds against the team with which he broke into the NBA in 2011 to help the Magic post wins on back-to-back nights for only the second time all season. Victor Oladipo, coming off a 4-for-19 game Friday night at Minnesota, struggled on offense for the majority of the game but came through when it mattered most.
The Bucks, who entered the night with the sixth-best record in the Eastern Conference, led by 12 points in the first quarter. But the Magic hung close, trailing only 53-51 at halftime and 73-72 through three quarters.
Rookies Elfrid Payton and Aaron Gordon played a major role in the Magic's 24th victory, which surpassed their total for all of last season. Payton had 10 points, 11 rebounds and three steals, while Gordon recorded the first double-double of his career with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
Interim coach James Borrego used only eight players, with Gordon being used at power forward in place of Dewayne Dedmon for the entire fourth quarter. For the third game in a row, Channing Frye never got off the bench.
Nikola Vucevic, who scored a career-high 37 points in the win over the Timberwolves, followed that up with 20 points and seven rebounds.
THE TURNING POINT
Down 88-84 with 3:38 remaining after a three-point play by Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Magic outscored the Bucks 13-2 the rest of the way. A 3-point field goal by Harris at the two-minute mark put them ahead to stay.
THE DIFFERENCE MAKER
After missing 13 of his first 16 shots, Oladipo accounted for eight of the Magic's final 11 points over the final 2:36.
STAT OF THE GAME
It marked the first time all season that Gordon led the Magic in rebounding by himself. He tied Kyle O'Quinn for team-high honors Feb. 2 at Oklahoma City with eight.
WHAT'S NEXT
Wednesday night vs. Chicago, 7 p.m.
You can follow Ken Hornack on Twitter @HornackFSFla or email him at khornack32176@gmail.com.
