Giannis Antetokounmpo had 44 points on 17-of-20 shooting, Bobby Portis had 23 points on five 3-pointers, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Los Angeles Lakers 131-116 on Tuesday night.
Khris Middleton scored all 21 of his points in the first half, Antetokounmpo had 14 rebounds and eight assists on all of his first 11 shots, and the reigning NBA champion posted his fourth win overall and second in a row against the two NBA teams. The Angels.
Milwaukee built a 24-point lead in the first half on 70% shooting and had a 30-point lead midway through the third quarter before surviving a powerful late comeback by the Lakers. The Bucks held on for their third win of a four-date West Coast road trip that will end with a replay of the NBA Finals in Phoenix on Thursday.
LeBron James finished with 27 points and Anthony Davis contributed 22 and nine rebounds for the Lakers, who couldn’t keep up with the champion even with their two aces in a starting lineup riddled with injuries, something that rarely happens. Los Angeles has lost five of its last seven games and is three games shy of the .500 mark.
The Lakers staged an impressive comeback in the fourth and cut Milwaukee’s lead to 10 points midway through the quarter thanks to a 20-5 run. Portis’ fifth three-pointer stopped the offense, and the hosts were never within 11 points again.