Bucks lose to Pacers despite Antetokounmpo’s 54 points
The Indiana Pacers withstood a 54-point explosion from Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo on Thursday to hand the Bucks a 126-124 defeat.
Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 29 points, including a three-pointer with 1:29 remaining. That gave the Pacers a 122-121 lead and they fell behind in a game they led by as many as 18 points in the first half before Antetokounmpo brought the Bucks back to life.
Haliburton added 10 assists to his total and Canadian Bennedict Mathurin scored 26 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Pacers, who trailed by 10 points at the start of the fourth quarter.
“We found a defensive solution,” Haliburton said. “And then, offensively, it allowed us to play a little faster, to play our offensive game a little more. We just managed to score at the right time.”
The big problem to deal with was Antetokounmpo. “Giannis obviously means a lot to us defensively.”
Antetokounmpo’s 54 points are one point shy of his career high and the most points in a game since the start of the season. He made two errors less than two minutes from the end of the match, missing his target on a pass before being dispossessed of the ball by Mathurin.
But in the absence of Damian Lillard, who is dealing with a calf strain, the NBA Most Valuable Player turned in a ferocious performance, hitting 19 of 25 from the field and 16 of 18 free throw attempts. . He also grabbed 12 rebounds and distributed three assists.
“I know he can do it, but when you see him up close, it’s impressive,” said Adrian Griffin, Milwaukee’s first-time coach, who was ejected in the third quarter for having contested a foul on Antetokounmpo. “I thought Giannis was getting hit a lot and I expressed my opinion. Next time I’ll do it a little more delicately.”
Khris Middleton scored 19 points for Milwaukee, missing a game-clinching three-pointer with 6.9 seconds left, before hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer.
“The two teams parted with one observation: one wanted a little more than the other,” said Pacers coach Rick Carlisle. “And our guys really wanted it.”
The match from Mexico
In Thursday’s only other game, the Hawks and Orlando Magic faced off in Mexico City, one of two regular-season games outside the United States this season. The Atlanta men won 120 to 119.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told reporters in Mexico that he expected the league to return next season to Mexico City, where the G-League’s Capitanes de Ciudad de Mexico are based.
“I don’t want to set a precise timetable,” he stressed, recalling that the idea had been launched during the mandate of his predecessor David Stern. “I will only say that outside of Mexico City we don’t expand very often. That said, it’s still important to plant a flag in every market where we can.”
2023-11-10 15:26:15
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