The Milwaukee Bucks won their third straight home game Friday night in a much needed 108-101 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
Giannis Antetokounmpo exploded with a game-high 28 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. All while playing a whopping 50 minutes in the contest. This marks the first time in his career he has notched three consecutive double-doubles.
“We just played hard, and got stops. A lot of guys played a lot of minutes. We just kept executing. Defensively, we covered one another and kept playing hard,” said. Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks never led in the game until four minutes to go in the third quarter after a field goal by John Henson to make the score 66-65. The Hawks would quickly regain the lead heading into the fourth quarter where both teams would battle back-and-forth for the entire frame.
The Hawks had the last possession in the fourth quarter, but Jeff Teague’s shot was denied at the buzzer by Michael Carter-Williams.
In overtime, Antetokounmpo came up clutch with a dunk, followed by a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Bucks a 106-99 lead as the crowd erupted. Michael Carter-Williams also hit a big 3-pointer earlier in overtime to gain momentum right away. Milwaukee only made a total of three 3-point field goals in the game (Carter-Williams 2, Antetokounmpo 1).
“There were a few big 3-pointers. We had a lot of big plays like that. Michael’s blocked shot, John’s (Henson) blocked shot, Khris (Middleton) was making plays. Just several guys out there making gutty efforts on big minutes,” said Bucks interim head coach Joe Prunty.
Middleton scored 26 points for the Bucks, and Greg Monroe and Carter-Williams each added 15 points apiece. John Henson tallied a season-high tying 6 blocks.
Paul Millsap led the way for the Hawks with 23 points and 10 rebounds, but fouled out with 1:17 left in regulation when the game was tied at 93-93. Al Horford added 18 points and 8 rebounds.
The Hawks only shot a total of six free-throws in the game, compared to 37 for the Bucks. This is the ninth time in franchise history Milwaukee has shot 30 or more free throws than its opponent.
“It was a tough loss on the road. I think we had our opportunities, and couldn’t quite get it done. Credit to Milwaukee, they made some plays and were very aggressive. They got to the free-throw line, and the difference in the game was getting to the free-throw line. It was a very competitive game and both teams got after it,” said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer.
With the win, the Bucks snapped a six-game Hawks winning streak in Milwaukee. The Bucks will now travel to Charlotte to face off against the Hornets (1/16), beginning a four-game road trip.