WASHINGTON – Damian Lillard “got into a rhythm” and scored a season-high 45 points and Giannis Antetokounmpo added 31 to lead the Milwaukee Bucks over the National Basketball Association’s doormats, the Detroit Pistons, 141-135 on Jan 20.
Lillard, who arrived from Portland in a pre-season trade, had 11 assists and made 12 of 22 shots from the floor, five of 11 from three-point range, and hit all 16 of his free-throw attempts.
“When the game started, I felt like I had a good warm-up, a good rhythm to the game,” Lillard said. “Saw a couple shots go in and I just felt good.”
His coach Adrian Griffin added: “Dame was so great tonight, and he was competing on both sides of the ball. I had no idea he had 45, but he’s a rhythm player and he definitely got into a rhythm out there.
“He made big shots, and that’s why he’s on this team.”
Lillard became the first player in Bucks history with 40 or more points, 10 or more assists and five three-pointers in a single game. He did so three nights after Milwaukee were thumped 135-95 on the road by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“I knew it was an important game. I picked my spots. I moved the ball when I needed to move it. I attacked when I needed to attack,” Lillard said.
“I’ve been slowly getting back to how I play more naturally and tonight was one of those nights.”
Greek star Antetokounmpo added 10 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and a blocked shot for visiting Milwaukee, who improved to 29-13, three games behind the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference lead.
Said Griffin: “Giannis was big on both ends. He got us some stops at the start of the second half and he was aggressive with the ball and getting to the rim.
“When he draws fouls, he gets us to the bonus faster than a lot of teams, and that’s invaluable.”
Alec Burks had 33 points off the bench, hitting seven of 14 three-point shots, to lead the league-worst Detroit, who fell to 4-38.
Said Pistons coach Monty Williams: “Burks has been phenomenal... His ability to score the ball and communicate with the young guys on the floor have helped us a ton.”
But he added: “It’s hard to play defence when a team has (49) free throws. I feel bad for our team because we’re trying to play good basketball and good defence.”
Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Joel Embiid had his 20th consecutive game since mid-November with at least 30 points, scoring 33 while grabbing 10 rebounds for Philadelphia in a 97-89 victory at Charlotte.
The Cameroonian star sank 11 of 23 shots from the floor and 11 of 12 from the free-throw line with five assists and three blocked shots for the 76ers.
Said Charlotte coach Steve Clifford: “He’s a brutal guy to defend.”
Miles Bridges led the Hornets with 25 points and 11 rebounds.
In Minnesota, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored a game-high 33 points to power the Oklahoma City Thunder over the Timberwolves 102-97, lifting the visitors to within a game of the hosts for the Western Conference lead.
A Gilgeous-Alexander three with 74 seconds remaining gave the Thunder (29-13) a 96-94 lead. Rudy Gobert sank a free throw for Minnesota (30-12) but Jalen Williams made four free throws in the final 15 seconds to seal the win.
In Washington, French rookie star Victor Wembanyama scored a game-high 24 points, pulled down eight rebounds, blocked six shots and had four assists to spark the San Antonio Spurs over the Wizards 131-127.
The 20-year-old, 2.24m centre was the top pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and his seven points led a closing 22-6 run over the final five minutes by the Spurs (8-34) to defeat the Wizards (7-34) in a match-up of the NBA’s second- and third-worst clubs.
“His whole game was fantastic,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of Wembanyama. “His rebounding, his shot – it ain’t pretty but it goes in more than most of our guys.
“He does a hell of a job in a lot of ways at both ends of the court.” AFP
