MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 42 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists in his return to Milwaukee’s lineup and the Bucks won their sixth in a row by beating the struggling Washington Wizards 124-114 on Saturday night (Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, PH time).
Antetokounmpo had missed the Bucks’ 106-103 NBA Cup victory at Miami on Tuesday due to swelling in his left knee.
The two-time MVP has three triple-doubles in the last six games he has played.
Antetokounmpo had 22 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 assists in a 115-114 loss at Charlotte on Nov. 16. He had 37 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds in a 129-117 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Nov. 22.
Damian Lillard added 25 points and 10 assists, while Brook Lopez scored 18 points on Saturday.
Jordan Poole had 31 points and Malcolm Brogdon added 29 points and 11 rebounds for the Wizards, who have lost 14 straight.
Washington’s Kyle Kuzma didn’t play due to a sprained left rib.
Washington did a nice job keeping pace with the Bucks virtually all night, but their youth showed when they failed to make plays down the stretch with the game on the line.
Since losing eight of their first 10 games, the Bucks have come all the way back to get above .500 (10-9) for the first time since winning their season opener.
Washington trailed 105-103 when Poole missed a deep 3-pointer that would have put the Wizards ahead with less than 4 1/2 minutes left. The Bucks then scored 10 straight points. Poole had a couple of turnovers and was called for a double technical with Milwaukee’s Taurean Prince during that stretch.
Antetokounmpo got his 42 points by shooting 15 of 24 from the floor and 12 of 17 from the foul line.
Suns 113, Warriors 105
PHOENIX — Devin Booker scored 27 points, Kevin Durant added 21, and the Phoenix Suns beat the Golden State Warriors 113-105.
Tyus Jones added 19 points and nine assists, making 7 of 9 shots, including 4 of 5 three-pointers. Grayson Allen added 17. The Suns made 18 of 35 (51.4%) shots from 3-point range.
Golden State has lost four in a row. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 23 points but shot just 8 of 20 from the field. Andrew Wiggins added 18 points, while Draymond Green had 13 points.
The Warriors trailed by 17 at halftime but cut the margin to 85-78 by the start of the fourth quarter after Curry poured in 15 points. Golden State went on a 9-0 run late in the fourth quarter to pull within 105-99 but Durant made a 3-pointer with 1:42 left to turn back the rally.
The Suns led 66-49 at halftime after making 14 of 21 (66.7%) of their 3-pointers.
Phoenix was playing without starters Bradley Beal (calf) and Jusuf Nurkic (quad). Beal has missed eight of 19 games this season because of various injuries.
Golden State’s in a bit of a funk these days after starting the season with a 12-3 record.
It was a nice bounce-back win for the Suns, who were embarrassed on their home court by the Nets on Wednesday. Jones had a great shooting night, which helped offset Durant’s 7 of 20 shooting night.
Jones made a 3-pointer with 6:28 left to give the Suns a 99-86 lead. The Warriors turned the ball over on the next possession and Booker hit a short jumper for a 15-point advantage.
Allen, Durant, Booker, Jones, and Royce O’Neale all had at least three 3-pointers.
Mavericks 106, Jazz 94
SALT LAKE CITY — Kyrie Irving scored 30 points and Quentin Grimes had 24 points to power the short-handed Dallas Mavericks over the Utah Jazz 106-94.
Dallas led the entire game despite playing without Luka Doncic (right wrist), Klay Thompson (left foot), and Dante Exum (right wrist). Naji Marshall left in the second quarter and didn’t return because of illness.
P.J. Washington had 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Mavericks, who have won four of five games — all without Doncic.
The Jazz have lost seven of their last eight games. Lauri Markkanen scored 19 points and Walker Kessler had 18 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocks for Utah.
The Mavericks led by as many as 20 in the first quarter, thanks to Grimes’ quick start with four 3s in the quarter.
Elsewhere, the Philadelphia 76ers routed the Detroit Pistons 111-96 and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Charlotte Hornets 107-104. / AP