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Tag: Brook Lopez

  • Bucks outlast Suns 104-101 for 14th consecutive victory

    Bucks outlast Suns 104-101 for 14th consecutive victory

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    MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence couldn’t prevent the Milwaukee Bucks from extending the longest winning streak in the NBA this season.

    Jrue Holiday scored 33 points and produced a critical steal, Brook Lopez made a tiebreaking layup with 24.8 seconds left and the Bucks edged the Phoenix Suns 104-101 on Sunday for their 14th consecutive victory.

    The rematch of the 2021 NBA Finals didn’t include either Antetokounmpo or new Suns superstar Kevin Durant, but it still featured 14 lead changes and plenty of late drama.

    “Both teams obviously have history,” Lopez said. “Those are the fun games, where the refs let it get physical a little bit, you can really go after each other. It was a great atmosphere.”

    Durant has yet to appear in a game for the Suns and hasn’t played since Jan. 8 because of a sprained right medial collateral ligament. Antetokounmpo was out with a bruised right quadriceps after leaving in the first quarter of the Bucks’ 128-99 victory over the Miami Heat on Friday.

    “It’s enough where he can’t play today, but I think we’re also confident that this is just a fairly common occurrence in our league,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said before the game. “You hit knees, you knock, sometimes it takes a day or two, and it’s really nothing more than that.”

    Holiday led all scorers, while Lopez had 22 points and 12 rebounds. Khris Middleton added 11 points and 10 rebounds.

    Devin Booker scored 24 points, Deandre Ayton had 22 and Chris Paul added 18 for Phoenix. Ayton also had 11 rebounds.

    After Booker made a game-tying jumper with 33 seconds left, the Bucks called a timeout and got the ball to Middleton, who found Lopez for the go-ahead layup.

    Holiday said he initially expected Middleton to shoot the ball.

    “It’s a great play,” Holiday said. “At first, I kind of saw it, but I thought that Khris was going to shoot it because that’s just what ‘K’ does. But he’s a playmaker. He’s not just a scorer.”

    Phoenix called a timeout and went back to Booker, who lost possession as Holiday forced the steal and Lopez got the loose ball.

    “That’s just the defender he is, the player he is,” Lopez said of Holiday. “He’s one of the top two-way players in the league, at least the top three. Just absolutely phenomenal. Just the best two-way player in the league. Those are the plays he makes just time and time again.”

    Booker said there was contact on the play, but no foul was called, a reflection of the game’s physical nature.

    “I was touched,” Booker said. “But I did the same thing to Jrue on the other end. On that play, he hit my arm. But it’s playoff-type basketball and refs are going to let things go. And that was that.”

    Joe Ingles made the first of two free throws to extend Milwaukee’s lead to 103-100 with 11.3 seconds left. Ingles missed the second free throw and the ball initially was ruled out of bounds on Milwaukee.

    But after Budenholzer challenged the call, replays determined the ball actually went out on Phoenix’s Terrence Ross. Holiday sank the first of two free throws with 10 seconds left but also missed the second, making the score 104-100.

    Booker was fouled on a 3 by Ingles with 0.9 seconds left but missed the first free throw. Booker made the second and intentionally missed the third, but Lopez got the rebound to seal the victory.

    TIP-INS

    Suns: Booker increased his career point total to 12,143 to overtake Shawn Marion (12,134) for fourth place on the Suns’ all-time list. The Suns’ career scoring leader is Walter Davis, with 15,666 points from 1977-88. … The Suns lost for just the fifth time in their last 17 games.

    Bucks: Wesley Matthews missed a second straight game due to a right calf strain. He also won’t be available Tuesday at Brooklyn. … Pat Connaughton returned after missing the Heat game with a sore left calf, but he went scoreless in 13 minutes. … Ex-Suns forward Jae Crowder had seven points. He made two 3-pointers during Milwaukee’s fourth-quarter comeback. … The Bucks’ franchise record for consecutive wins is 20 straight during their 1970-71 championship season.

    UP NEXT

    Suns: At Charlotte on Wednesday.

    Bucks: at Brooklyn on Tuesday.

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    AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • Giannis sets assists mark, hurts wrist; Bucks beat Bulls

    Giannis sets assists mark, hurts wrist; Bucks beat Bulls

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    CHICAGO (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo stayed on the ground, grimacing in pain before heading to the locker room. A sprained wrist in the early going ended his night.

    Not before he set yet another franchise record.

    Antetokounmpo became Milwaukee’s career assists leader before getting injured, and the Bucks won their 12th straight, beating the Chicago Bulls 112-100 on Thursday night.

    Brook Lopez scored a season-high 33 points. Jevon Carter had 22 against his hometown team, and Jrue Holiday added 15 points and nine assists.

    The Bucks were never seriously threatened. But Antetokounmpo’s injury early in the second quarter cast a bit of a cloud over a team that otherwise has so much going for it heading into the All-Star break.

    Coach Mike Budenholzer said initial reports were “hopeful” and the X-ray was “clean.”

    “We’ll just see how he feels tomorrow, see how he feels the next few days and continue to evaluate it,” Budenholzer said.

    He had “no idea” if Antetokounmpo would travel to Salt Lake City for the All-Star Game.

    The two-time MVP was hurt trying to block a finger roll attempt by Chicago’s Coby White after the guard drove past him. He jammed his wrist when he reached out — perhaps to soften the blow — as he crashed into the padded stanchion. He continued to flex his hand and got subbed out a few seconds later before heading to the locker room.

    “He’s a guy that’s attacking the basket all the time,” Budenholzer said. “He’s fearless. He takes a lot of falls so you kind of learn to just expect him to always just bounce back up, and that’s what we’re hoping for from this one.”

    Antetokounmpo finished with a season-low two points and three assists, giving him 3,274 over 10 seasons to break Paul Pressey’s record of 3,272 from 1982 to 1990. He also had seven rebounds.

    SETTING THE RECORD

    Antetokounmpo matched the assists mark when he fed Lopez for a 3-pointer two minutes into the game and broke it when he passed to Carter for another 3 that bumped Milwaukee’s lead to 19-10 in the first quarter. He also is the Bucks’ career leader in blocks, triple-doubles, free throws made, free throws attempted and minutes.

    “It’s greatness, right?” Holiday said. “Especially to do it with one franchise, to be here through the ups and the downs, to see where he started and where he is now. I’m so happy for him.”

    Lopez made three 3-pointers. Carter hit four from beyond the arc, and the Bucks beat Chicago for the first time in three games this season.

    SLIDE CONTINUES

    The Bulls lost their sixth in a row, their worst skid since dropping six straight in the 2020-21 season. They also fell seven games under .500 at 26-33, not what they envisioned after making the playoffs a year ago.

    Nikola Vucevic had 22 points and 16 rebounds. Zach LaVine scored 18, and Patrick Williams had 16 points.

    “We’re not just throwing in the towel,” LaVine said. “I don’t think we have the type of team or personnel to do that. Losing hurts.”

    SIDELINED STARS

    Both teams were missing stars, with Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton managing a sore right knee that has kept him out for a big portion of the season and Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan sidelined for the second time in as many nights because of a strained right quadriceps.

    TIP-INS

    Bucks: Though Middleton’s absence was not expected, coach Mike Budenholzer said the three-time All-Star did not experience a setback against Boston on Tuesday. Middleton had 16 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes against the Celtics. “I think we’re overall not concerned, but we’ll see how he does over the break and just continue to work with him and make sure he’s in a good place when he plays,” Budenholzer said.

    Bulls: The Bulls said DeRozan is expected to play in the All-Star Game on Sunday. … G Ayo Dosunmu was selected to replace injured Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green on fellow former Illinois star Deron Williams’ team in Friday’s Rising Stars game. The Chicago product played in the game as a rookie last year and was averaging 9.6 points and 2.9 assists in his second season after being drafted in the second round. Dosunmu called it a “blessing” to be selected again and said Williams was “a big mentor” for him in the draft process.

    UP NEXT

    Bucks: Host Miami on Feb. 24.

    Bulls: Host Brooklyn on Feb. 24.

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    AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • Analysis: No shock in East as Celtics, Bucks vie for lead

    Analysis: No shock in East as Celtics, Bucks vie for lead

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    The top of the Eastern Conference looks about as expected — with Boston and Milwaukee currently neck and neck for the lead.

    Those fast starts have been anything but routine, however.

    The Celtics suspended their coach before the season even started, but under interim choice Joe Mazzulla, they’re now on a seven-game winning streak and have the best record in the NBA. The Bucks won their first nine games, but recently they’ve had to deal with Giannis Antetokounmpo’s occasional absences. They’ve won two of three when he’s been out.

    “It just shows our depth and how good of a team we truly are,” Milwaukee’s Brook Lopez said recently. “Coach (Mike Budenholzer) — he said before, it’s like, it’s kind of exciting. Giannis gets to rest, refill his cup, and we get a chance to get better and see what we’re like without Giannis on the court, and get better in that way.”

    The Celtics (11-3) and Bucks (10-3) don’t play each other until Christmas. For now, these two teams — who played a stirring seven-game playoff series in the second round last season — are bringing a bit of normalcy to the standings. That’s been largely absent in the West, where Golden State is muddling along under .500 while Utah and Portland are around the top of the conference.

    The Celtics went to the NBA Finals last season in Ime Udoka’s first season as coach. Then he was suspended for at least this season for violating team rules by having a relationship with a female staffer within the organization. Mazzulla took over and has the team rolling. Boston routed Nikola Jokic and Denver 131-112 on Friday. On Monday night, the Celtics rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat Oklahoma City 126-122.

    After falling just short of a title last season, Boston looks tested and ready to contend again.

    “These guys have been through a ton, and it helps them in a game like tonight where they really don’t have it going, and then they’ve got to turn it on on both ends of the floor and they did,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said after Monday’s game. “So credit them. They went and got that one.”

    Boston is No. 1 in the league in offensive rating, and Milwaukee is No. 1 in defensive rating. The first time the Bucks played without Antetokounmpo this season was a little over a week ago against Oklahoma City. Lopez scored 25 points, Bobby Portis had 21 rebounds, Jrue Holiday had 13 assists — and Milwaukee held the Thunder under 100 points to win by 14.

    “I think we all knew obviously that we’d all have to chip in,” Lopez said. “Pretty much everyone came on, had an impact.”

    These are the stretches that test a team over the course of an 82-game season, when injuries or just normal wear and tear leave a star player unavailable. That win over the Thunder gave Milwaukee a 9-0 record, and since then, the Bucks have played twice more without Antetokounmpo, who has dealt with left knee soreness.

    The Bucks split those two games. Ironically, they’ve lost the last two games they’ve played with Antetokounmpo, including Monday against Atlanta.

    Still, they’ve shown they can win without their biggest star. Another team that’s done that of late is the Washington Wizards, who have won four straight despite playing all of those games without Bradley Beal, who went through health and safety protocols.

    The last game Beal played in was Nov. 4, a 42-point loss to Brooklyn. Coincidentally, that was also the first game for the Nets following Kyrie Irving’s suspension. Irving was suspended after posting a tweet with a link to a documentary that includes Holocaust denial and conspiracy theories about Jews. The Nets said they suspended him in part because he wouldn’t say unequivocally he has no antisemitic beliefs.

    Brooklyn looked downright dysfunctional while losing six of its first eight games. Coach Steve Nash was replaced after the team’s seventh game, and then — with Jacque Vaughn serving as acting coach — Irving scored just four points in a loss to Chicago.

    But since then, Brooklyn has won four of six, all without Irving — and the Nets decided to keep Vaughn as their head coach going forward. His team isn’t surging quite the way Mazzulla’s is, but Brooklyn is hopeful it has found the right leader after an ugly start to the season.

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    Follow Noah Trister at https://twitter.com/noahtrister

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    AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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