Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 41-point, 15-rebound, nine-assist performance powered the Milwaukee Bucks to a 126-110 win over visiting the Chicago Bulls on Friday in an NBA Cup game.
Antetokounmpo scored 19 points in the fourth quarter to help keep Chicago at bay. Milwaukee led throughout the final period, but the Bulls hovered around a deficit of three to seven points until a pivotal stretch beginning with back-to-back Antetokounmpo buckets.
He sank a 3-pointer with 5:14 remaining, and then, after Milwaukee’s Kyle Kuzma rebounded a missed Isaac Okoro attempt from beyond the arc at the other end, Ryan Rollins fed Antetokounmpo for a lob dunk.
The Bucks built on the 10-point lead when Myles Turner swiped his fourth steal of the night then converted an and-one to cap Milwaukee’s 8-0 run.
After a basket by Chicago’s Nikola Vucevic, Rollins pushed the surge to 11-2 with a wide-open 3-pointer, set up on a pass from Antetokounmpo.
Rollins finished with 20 points and shot 4-for-6 from 3-point distance. Turner put up 23 points, six more than his previous season high, and grabbed eight rebounds.
Kuzma and Cole Anthony added 11 points each coming off the bench for Milwaukee, which was playing its NBA Cup opener.
Chicago came into the contest with the best overall record in the Eastern Conference, including an Oct. 31 NBA Cup win over the New York Knicks. The loss to the Bucks drops the Bulls to 1-1 in East Group C competition.
Matas Buzelis finished with team highs of 20 points and eight rebounds for Chicago.
Josh Giddey posted 16 points and 14 rebounds, Vucevic added another 16 points, and Tre Jones registered 17 points. Kevin Huerter scored 13 points off the bench, but his 1-of-5 shooting from 3-point range reflected a 10-of-33 night (30.3%) from deep for the Bulls as a team.
Chicago’s Ayo Dosunmu returned from a two-game absence caused by a quad injury to score seven points off the bench, well below his season average of 16.2.
–Field Level Media
