Balanced Bucks end dry spell in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Milwaukee Bucks have flaws like most every team still hovering around .500, but good depth is not one of them.

The Bucks showed just how deep they are Thursday night by spanking the Orlando Magic 115-100 in a game that was never close in the second half.

The Bucks had seven players reach double figures, despite playing without injured starters Ersan Ilyasova and Zaza Pachulia and suspended Larry Sanders.

“All season long, our motto has kind of been ‘next man up,'” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. “The next guy in line steps up. Our bench has been good all year.”

Reserve guard Jerryd Bayless scored 19 points in 20 minutes to lead the Bucks, but he had plenty of help in a well-balanced, share-the-ball attack.

Forward Jared Dudley and guard Khris Middleton had 17 points apiece. Guard Brandon Knight had 16 points and nine assists, and guard O.J. Mayo scored 13. Third-string center John Henson, in his first start of the season, finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Forward Giannis Antetokounmpo contributed 10 points.

“Everybody we have can play,” Henson said. “It’s just a matter of getting your opportunity to prove it. Tonight, we moved the ball and played well defensively. Just a great team effort. That’s just the way this team is.”

The Bucks (24-22) also snapped a 17-game losing streak in Orlando, dating to 2004. The Magic (15-34) lost their seventh consecutive game.

Magic guard Victor Oladipo had 21 points and five rebounds, and center Nikola Vucevic added 17 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Reserve guard Willie Green scored 16 points, point guard Elfrid Payton added 15 and guard Evan Fournier had 11.

“I’m really surprised by the result of tonight’s game,” Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. “I thought our energy and focus going into the game was good. I think we did press a little bit throughout the game, when they jumped on us. We didn’t respond.”

The Bucks, who were without three key frontcourt players, never trailed. The Magic never got closer than 11 points in the second half and never seriously challenged after intermission.

The Magic committed 24 turnovers, including 19 in the first three quarters when they fell hopelessly behind by 29 points. Orlando’s opponent scored at least 100 points for the 11th consecutive game. The Bucks cracked triple digits with 8:54 remaining on a layup by Mayo.

“We miss the guys who weren’t out there tonight, but we find a way to compensate,” Bayless said. “Every night, it’s a different guy.”

The Magic held a 49-38 edge in rebounds, but their poor defense was a problem again. Milwaukee made 45 of 87 shots from the field (51.7 percent). They made 12 of 25 (48 percent) from 3-point range. The Magic allowed too many easy layups, too.

“It’s a learning process. They were shooting the cover off it,” Oladipo said. “But teams get hot like that. You have to deal with it and respond better than we did.”

The Bucks, who led by 15 points at halftime, increased the margin in a hot-shooting third quarter when they went 16 of 23 from the floor. Knight had 14 points in the quarter, hitting 6 of 8.

Milwaukee led 96-71 at the end of three quarters after holding a 59-44 edge at intermission.

The Bucks rode an early, well-balanced offensive surge when all 10 players scored at least two points in the first half.

They led by as many as 20 points in the second quarter and the Magic had 13 turnovers before halftime.

“We don’t depend on one guy to come out and score 20,” Mayo said. “We get people involved. We just play together and move the ball.”

NOTES: The Bucks were without C Zaza Pachulia and F Ersan Ilyasova, weakening their front line considerably. Both were hurt Tuesday in a win at Miami. Pachulia injured his calf and Ilyasova left in the first quarter after aggravating a previous groin injury. “We have enough bodies to compete,” Bucks coach Jason Kidd said earlier in the day. … The Bucks already were without C Larry Sanders, who started 26 games this season before being suspended Jan. 16 by the NBA for violating its anti-drug program. … The injuries made it an easier decision Wednesday for the Bucks to sign 37-year-old veteran F Kenyon Martin for the rest of the season. Martin had finished his second 10-day contract. He and Kidd had played together with both the Nets and the Knicks. … Magic C Nikola Vucevic and Bucks G Brandon Knight previously expressed faint hopes of making the Eastern Conference All-Star team that was announced Thursday, but neither was selected.