Milwaukee, Wisconsin (AP) – The Milwaukee Bucks were unfazed by Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence. The Bucks won their sixth straight game on Monday night, coming back from a deficit to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers 113-106 behind 41 points from Damian Lillard. Due to left Achilles tendonitis, Antetokounmpo, the two-time MVP, was forced to sit out his third game of the year. Lillard remarked, “I think it just shows who we’re becoming.” As they prepare to embark on a four-game trip to California that begins on Tuesday at the Golden State Warriors before heading to another match with the Clippers on Sunday, the Bucks are undefeated since the All-Star break.
For a club that had finished 3-7 in the first ten games
Under new coach Doc Rivers, it’s quite the comeback. Similar to how they have been winning without three-time All-Star Khris Middleton, who has missed 11 straight games due to a sprained left ankle, the Bucks triumphed on Monday sans Antetokounmpo. Before the game, no one discussed who wasn’t playing, according to Lillard. “It seemed as though we had entered a dressing rooms; Doctor didn’t come in and declare when George was finished. Khris has left. It was as if we entered, discussed the scouting report and our strategies for winning the game, and then we left.
That, in my opinion, merely illustrates our evolving expectations, our new benchmark, and our shared identity as a team.The Clippers were playing one night after winning 89-88 at Minnesota when they ran out of steam in the closing minutes. Paul George and James Harden each scored 29 points for the Clippers. Kawhi Leonard put in 16 more points. The Bucks defeated the Clippers 23–10 in the closing five minutes of the game, overturning a 13–point deficit. Coach Tyronn Lue of the Clippers stated, “I think we got a little jump shot-happy when they went to that zone instead of keeping hitting the post and moving into the middle.”
Most likely, we were in the fourth-quarter bonus phase.
They did a great job of entering the zone, but we didn’t handle it properly after that. Bobby Portis scored fourteen of his twenty-eight points and grabbed sixteen rebounds, a season high, in the fourth quarter. He became the first player in the NBA to record at least 25 points and 15 rebounds this season after coming off the bench. Portis said, “The men had to take responsibility for their actions.” I think it was just one of those situations where I needed to be a little more pushy than usual. With 12 more points, Patrick Beverley set off the winning surge.
The 4:33 remaining, he made a 3-pointer to tie the game—96. With 4:10 left, Lillard made a driving layup to give the Bucks their first lead since the first quarter after Beverley, a Clippers player, stole the ball. A.J. Green made a deep 3-pointer to make it 101-96 after Brook Lopez stopped Leonard’s driving layup attempt. During the Bucks’ 15-0 run that put them ahead for good, Portis scored the final four points. With 1:31 remaining, the Clippers cut the lead to five, but the Bucks didn’t look back when Portis scored five points in a row.
Blog By:- ExpertSadar
