A couple short weeks ago the Milwaukee Bucks were playing great basketball and the Orlando Magic were in a terrible funk. Fast forward to today and the roles have been reversed. <\/p>\n
NBA Basketball Matchup: Milwaukee Bucks vs. Orlando Magic<\/strong> Matchup<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Preview<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Orlando has wins over Miami and Philadelphia in the past week, while Milwaukee has lost five of their last eight games overall.<\/p>\n Can the Bucks get things turned back around Friday night in Orlando?<\/p>\n Brandon Jennings called out the entire team, himself included, after the team\u2019s loss to New Orleans at home Wednesday night. Jennings said he didn\u2019t believe he was playing his hardest, and that the entire team needs to pick it back up. It\u2019s hard to tell how the team will respond to such comments from their leader on the floor.<\/p>\n Jennings is averaging 18.4 points per game, which is a career high. Depth isn\u2019t an issue for Milwaukee, as they have 12 healthy players who average at least ten minutes of playing time per game. The Bucks defense has let them down badly of late. [soliloquy id=”82219″]<\/p>\n Milwaukee is allowing opponents to score 103.8 points per game in their last five contests.<\/p>\n Orlando has found an offensive rhythm over the last couple weeks. It hasn\u2019t been one single thing, but rather a combination of several key improvements.<\/p>\n Jason Richardson has been much more aggressive on the offensive end. In addition, Jameer Nelson is slowing starting to get his shot back again.<\/p>\n Ryan Anderson and J.J. Redick give the Magic two of the best three-point shooters in the league. Dwight Howard is still in Orlando for the time being, and he is still a beast in the post. Howard averages 20.1 points and 15.1 rebounds per game.<\/p>\n After struggling to score through the first 20 games of the season, Orlando has scored 100 points or more in six of their last nine games.<\/p>\n Look for the Bucks to play a little more inspired basketball in this one, but it probably won\u2019t be enough.<\/p>\n
\n 7:00 PM EST<\/strong>
\n NBA Gambling Odds from Bookmaker<\/strong>
\n NBA Betting Favorite: Magic -7.5<\/strong>
\n Over\/Under: 192.5<\/strong><\/p>\n