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Giannis Antetokounmpo (#34) of the Milwaukee Bucks drives toward the rim in the game against the Chicago Bulls at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, November 13, 2023. /CFP
The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Chicago Bulls 118-109 at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Monday, avoiding a third straight loss.
Damian Lillard came back from a two-game injury break but he wasn't even near his regular form. Having shot 3-for-17 from the field, including 1-for-9 outside the 3-point line, he only got 12 points and five assists for the Bucks.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis made most of the Bucks' offensive contributions as both dropped double-doubles. Antetokounmpo made 13 of his 22 field goals (FG) attempts and went to the free throw line 14 times to drop 35 points and 11 rebounds. Portis knocked down three triples to score 19 points and 10 rebounds. He went perfectly 6-for-6 from the left side of the rim.
Nikola Vucevic (R) of the Chicago Bulls drives toward the rim in the game against the Milwaukee Bucks at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, November 13, 2023. /CFP
The Bucks and their fans must also be glad to see Khris Middleton play more like himself from the 2020-21 season when they won the NBA championship. Though he missed four of his five shots from downtown, Middleton made all five of his jumpers in the middle range to add 13 points for the team.
Compared with the Bucks who saw multiple players provide firepower during different periods of time, the Bulls were desperate for the second source of points to help Nikola Vucevic in the first three quarters. Vucevic used every weapon from his arsenal to score team-high 26 points plus 12 rebounds and five assists. Unfortunately, the other two of the team's "Big Three," Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, combined to shoot only 3-for-23 in the first three quarters.
LaVine finally woke up in the final period to drain two triples and got 12 points for the Bulls. DeRozan only took two shots in this quarter, but he delivered four assists. Their side had 35 points at 48 percent from the field, but their defensive intensity was far from enough to contain the Bucks from exchanging points with them on most possessions, making it difficult to overcome the deficit left from the first three periods.
Jayson Tatum (#0) of the Boston Celtics shoots in the game against the New York Knicks at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, November 13, 2023. /CFP
Other games on Monday (away teams come first):
New York Knicks 98-114 Boston Celtics
The Celtics and the Knicks were the NBA's second-and the fourth-best defensive teams before Monday's game. Then the Celtics beat the Knicks on both ends of the game at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. Not only did they limit the opponents' FG rate to 41.2 percent, the Celtics also knocked down 114 points at 50.6 percent from the floor.
Jayson Tatum was "Mr. Big Time" for the Celtics in the fourth quarter during which he made four triples and got 17 points. His excellent performance led to a 30-22 drive in this period. In his seventh season in the league, Tatum reached a career-high FG rate of 52 percent with a true shooting percentage of .642.
Pascal Siakam (#43) of the Toronto Raptors shoots in the game against the Washington Wizards at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, November 13, 2023. /CFP
Washington Wizards 107-111 Toronto Raptors
The Raptors trailed by as many as 23 points (71-48) in the third quarter, but then Pascal Siakam took the center of the stage at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada, by shooting 8-for-11 in FGs and scoring 22 points for the Raptors in this period alone. Though they didn't have anyone score in double-digits in the fourth quarter, they allowed no more than 16 points by the Wizards with four steals and two blocks and came back to win in the end.
As the Wizards' top-two players, Kyle Kuzma and Jordan Poole both let their team down, but in different ways. Kuzma had 34 points, but committed three turnovers in the final period. Poole went 6-for-16 from the field and missed all three of his shots in the fourth period, contributing nothing but one turnover and two fouls.
De'Aaron Fox (#5) of the Sacramento Kings shoots in the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, November 13, 2023. /CFP
Cleveland Cavaliers 120-132 Sacramento Kings
De'Aaron Fox returned for the Kings at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, after being held back by a sprained ankle for five games. He made 11 of his 20 FG attempts to get game-high 28 points. Three of his teammates, Keegan Murray, Domantas Sabonis and Kevin Huerter all scored double-digit points as well. Sabonis was one rebound away from having a triple-double. Huerter went 5-for-5 from the field, including knocking down four triples, to get 14 points in the third period.
The dominance of the Kings made the fact that they reached 110 points in only three quarters not so surprising.