RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) The Milwaukee Bucks won't give themselves
much time to enjoy their first NBA playoff series victory in 12
years.
| | Tracy McGrady called Glenn 'Big Dog' Robinson a little puppy, but Robinson's team advanced. |
Ray Allen scored 26 points and Sam Cassell had 14 of his 25
points in the third quarter as the Bucks defeated Orlando 112-104
Tuesday night to win their first-round series 3-1.
"We have a day, maybe, to celebrate, but we're hoping to make
this a beginning, not a celebration," Milwaukee coach George Karl
said.
The Bucks, who hadn't won an NBA playoff series since 1989,
advanced to face Charlotte in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Hornets swept favored Miami in the first round.
The Magic were led by 25 points from Tracy McGrady, who set an
NBA playoff record for a four-game series with 123 field-goal
attempts. Rookie guard Mike Miller broke out of his shooting slump
to score 22 points.
Milwaukee, the league's second-highest scoring team in the
regular season, entered Game 4 shooting only 41 percent from the
field. But the Bucks scored 75 points in the second and third
quarters behind 56.1 percent shooting (23-for-41) to take control.
"We are not a fast, athletic, speed team, but we are a
fast-shooting team and that's how we like to play," Karl said.
"It's been a lesson on my part, learning to accept some of the
crazy shots we take, but that's what we do well."
Orlando coach Doc Rivers said he knew his team was in trouble
early when the Magic built a double-digit lead in the second
quarter.
"I really thought if we kept playing at that pace, it was going
to come back and haunt us," said Rivers, who was in his first
playoff series as a coach. "When you play at that pace against a
team like the Bucks, you are saying that we are going to try to
outgun you -- and you cannot outgun them."
The Bucks took the lead for good in the third quarter behind
Cassell's two 3-pointers, which started and ended a 10-2 run to
open the second half, giving Milwaukee a 67-63 advantage.
Cassell later had six straight points, beating Darrell
Armstrong, as the Bucks went ahead 82-75 after the Magic rallied to
take a two-point lead.
Keeping the Magic from disaster during the Bucks' outburst was,
as usual, McGrady, who averaged 33.8 points in the series. He had
13 points in the quarter, including five straight on a three-point
play and a jumper to cut Orlando's deficit to 90-87 with 2:38 left.
"He's a talented player, and we don't have a mechanism to
disrupt him like maybe some of the other teams do," Karl said.
But Milwaukee ended the period with a 7-0 run for a 97-87
advantage, and Orlando never got closer than seven points in the
fourth quarter.
McGrady blamed fatigue for his fade down the stretch. He missed
all four of his shots in the final quarter.
"I came to the sideline after the first timeout and my legs
were just gone, shot," McGrady said. "I felt like I was running
in cement. I knew it was going to be a long night for me."
Milwaukee, down 16 points in the second quarter, closed within
four points at intermission with 8-0 and 9-2 runs. Tim Thomas had
10 of his 15 points in the period, and Allen added nine.
Orlando broke out to its largest lead of the series early in the
second quarter on Michael Doleac's dunk off a steal and
coast-to-coast breakaway. That put the Magic ahead 40-24 with 10:46
before halftime.
Orlando's backcourt depth, already hurt by the one-game
suspension of Dee Brown, took another blow when reserve point guard
Troy Hudson sprained his ankle in the second quarter and didn't
return. Hudson had six points and two assists in eight minutes
before leaving the game.
Brown had to sit out the game as punishment for leaving the
bench during a brief scuffle in Game 3 on Saturday night.
Everything was falling for the Magic in the opening minutes as
they hit 12 of their first 18 shots en route to a 29-18 lead with
3:09 left in the first period.
"We were shell-shocked to start the game," Allen said.
Miller, who entered the game averaging 8.7 points on 33.3
percent shooting, was 4-for-5 in the opening period and scored nine
points.
Game notes The previous record for field goals attempted in a
four-game series was 116, set by Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon during
the 1995 NBA Finals against Orlando. ... Milwaukee's last playoff
series victory in 1989 came in four games against the Atlanta
Hawks. The Bucks then were swept by the Detroit Pistons, who went
on to capture the NBA title. ... Orlando's Bo Outlaw had eight
rebounds in the first quarter, but only four afterward. ... Darvin
Ham started at power forward for Milwaukee, with Scott Williams
moving to center. Mark Pope, who started the three previous games
at center, didn't play. ... Former NBA center Artis Gilmore and
lightweight world boxing champion Roy Jones Jr. were among the
sellout crowd of 17,248.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Milwaukee Clubhouse
Orlando Clubhouse
Magic-Bucks Series Page
RECAPS
Milwaukee 112 Orlando 104
Dallas 107 Utah 77
AUDIO/VIDEO
It was a successful season for Tracy McGrady, despite being eliminated by a tough Bucks' team.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
The Bucks continue to impress coach George Karl, but the playoffs aren't over yet.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
The Magic's fast-paced play in the first half had coach Doc Rivers concerned.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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