ORLANDO – The Milwaukee Bucks shrugged off the absence of star man Giannis Antetokounmpo to tighten their grip on top spot in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) Eastern Conference on Tuesday with a 134-123 road win over the Orlando Magic.
The Bucks lost All-Star Antetokounmpo to illness and Jrue Holiday because of a sore neck, but still moved 2½ games clear of the Boston Celtics with a clinical offensive display that saw Brook Lopez, Khris Middleton and Jevon Carter share the scoring around.
“I really think it’s just the calibre of players we have,” Lopez said on ESPN on how Milwaukee have players who can step up.
“We’ve got guys who are high basketball IQ and are unselfish, team first. It’s great to have a couple of those guys, but to have a bench full of them, we’re really lucky.”
The centre finished with 26 points after shooting 64.3 per cent from the field while Middleton and Carter both chipped in with 24 points apiece.
Bobby Portis, Jae Crowder and Joe Ingles also finished in double digits for the Bucks, who have now won nine straight games on the road.
Milwaukee – who saw their 16-game unbeaten streak snapped by the Philadelphia 76ers last Saturday – improved to 47-18 at the top of the Eastern Conference. The Celtics are 45-21.
The Bucks were always in control against Orlando on Tuesday, leading from the end of the first quarter onwards and maintaining a comfortable double-digit lead for most of the fourth quarter.
Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer singled out Lopez for praise following the win.
“We tend to talk about his defence so much but offensively, he’s been really good – it was great to get him going early,” he said.
“It’s good to see him scoring in a variety of ways... we’re fortunate for all the different things he can do.”
In Minneapolis, the Sixers strolled to a 117-94 drubbing of the Timberwolves for their third straight victory.
Joel Embiid came within a whisker of a second consecutive 40-point game after his 42 points against Indiana on Monday, delivering 39 points against a Minnesota team who struggled offensively.
With James Harden rested, Tyrese Maxey once again provided offensive support with 27 points while De’Anthony Melton (11) and Tobias Harris (10) also made double figures.
The Sixers improved to 43-22 to remain in third place in the Eastern Conference.
“I just want to do whatever it takes to win games,” Embiid said afterwards.
“Tonight without James (Harden) I wanted to be as aggressive as possible to make sure we got the win. We played really good defence and offensively we moved the ball and made shots.”
The New York Knicks’ nine-game winning streak came to an abrupt end at the Madison Square Garden with a 112-105 loss to the lowly Charlotte Hornets.
Charlotte – second from bottom in the East – looked to be sliding towards their 47th defeat of the season as New York pulled into a 15-point lead early in the second half.
But they came alive with a 37-point third quarter and then outscored the Knicks 25-16 in the final frame to snatch victory.
Kelly Oubre Jr had 27 points, Terry Rozier had 25 and Gordon Hayward had 23 for Charlotte.
In Los Angeles, Anthony Davis had 30 points and a season-high 22 rebounds as the Lakers continued their late-season play-off push with a 112-103 victory over the visiting Memphis Grizzlies.
Dennis Schroder, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves each scored 17 points as the Lakers improved to 5-2 since the All-Star break and to 3-2 since LeBron James was sidelined with a foot injury.
Los Angeles now sit in ninth place in the Western Conference.
Elsewhere, Stephen Curry poured in 40 points for Golden State (34-32) in only his second game since returning from injury but could not prevent the NBA champions from slipping to a 137-128 road loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. AFP, REUTERS
