By Adrian Stewart Co
Milwaukee Bucks got its acts together at the right time to pull off a 133-122 win over Washington Wizards in the 2020-2021 NBA Season on Monday (Tuesday in the Philippines) at the Capital One Arena in Washington.
Holding to a 105-89 lead, the Bucks suddenly saw its advantage trimmed to 110-115 by a furious Wizards rally. Baskets by Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez and Khris Middleton gave Bucks a 121-112 edge.
Washington made its last push by coming to as close as seven but consecutive shots from Giannis Antetokounmpo widened Milwaukee’s lead to 129-116 with over a minute left.
Antetokounmpo finished the match with 31 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, his third consecutive triple-double, as the Bucks won its fourth straight to improve to 25-14.
Middleton added 23 markers, while Lopez, Holiday, Bobby Portis, Donte DiVincenzo, and Bryn Forbes also added double-digit scores with 22, 15, 13, 12 and 10 markers, respectively.
Bradley Beal tallied 37 points, while Russell Westbrook contributed 23 points and 17 assists and Rui Hachimura had 22 markers as the Wizards dropped to 14-24 slate.
Meanwhile, Charlotte Hornets (20-18) leaned on a strong fourth quarter push to score a come-from-behind 122-116 victory over Sacramento Kings (15-24) for its fourth straight triumph.
Down for most part of the match, the Hornets leaned on a strong fourth quarter from LaMelo Ball, Gordon Hayward and Terry Rozier to tie the score at 113-all.
Rozier swung the lead to the Hornets with over a minute left with a three-pointer. Following misses by the Kings, Rozier and Hayward converted free throws to seal the win.
Rozier top-scored with 26 points, while Hayward added 25 markers and Ball and Devonte Graham had 16 and 12 points, respectively, for the Hornets.
In other results, Brooklyn Nets (27-13) escaped with a close 117-112 win over New York Knicks (20-20), while San Antonio Spurs (20-16) walloped Detroit Pistons (10-29), 109-99.
BOX SCORE:
MILWAUKEE 133 – Antetokounmpo 31, Middleton 23, Lopez 22, Holiday 15, Portis 13, Divincenzo 12, Forbes 10, Augustin 5, Connaughton 2.
WASHINGTON 122 – Beal 37, Westbrook 23, Hachimura 22, Avdija 11, Bertans 9, Matthews 6, Neto 6, Lopez 5, Len 3, Winston 0.
Quarterscores: 32-23, 69-55, 105-89, 133-122./ASC, WDJ