Jerami Grant scored 35 points to lead the short-handed Portland Trail Blazers to a 115-103 victory over the Bucks in Milwaukee on Monday night.
Deni Avdija added 22 for a Portland team without former Buck Jrue Holiday (calf), Scoot Henderson (hamstring) and Shaedon Sharpe (calf). Donovan Clingan added 14 points with 12 rebounds.
Milwaukee lost its fifth in a row and third straight without Giannis Antetokounmpo (groin strain). Bobby Portis led the Bucks with 22 points, though all but two of them came in the first half.
Cole Anthony kept the game within reach with 16 points, while Kyle Kuzma scored 15 and Myles Turner added 13 with 11 rebounds.
The Blazers came out strong at the start, with Grant pouring in 13 in the opening quarter and Portland growing a 12-point lead.
The second quarter largely belonged to Portis, who scored 14 in the quarter, including 4 of 5 shots from 3-point range.
However, Portland outscored the Bucks by seven in the quarter with six 3-pointers and nine free throws to take a 65-53 lead at the break. Grant led Portland at halftime with 22, with half of those coming from the charity stripe.
In the third, Portland continued its edge at the free-throw line as it hit nine in the quarter to just two for Milwaukee. The Blazers took a commanding 95-74 lead into the fourth.
Portland used a whopping 23-2 run over the third and fourth quarters to lead by 33 with less than nine minutes remaining.
The Bucks went a 16-1 run but it only put a dent into a deficit too massive to overcome.
This was Portland’s fourth consecutive victory over Milwaukee. Before last season, the Trail Blazers hadn’t swept the two-game series since the 2013-14 campaign.
–Field Level Media
