LAS VEGAS (AP) — Tuesday night’s championship between Milwaukee and Oklahoma City didn’t quite have the intensity of a playoff game, but the high energy that has typified the second version of the NBA Cup was ratcheted up.
With a trophy — and a significant amount of money on the line — it was clear this was no normal mid-December game.
Even for one that doesn’t count in the standings.
“It’s closer to elevated regular season than the playoffs, in my opinion,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said after his team’s 97-81 loss to the Bucks. “Time of year has to do with that. The nature of a series versus a one-and-done situation has to do with that. Playing elevated opponents with some elevated stakes, elevated distractions, is a good experience in December for our team.”
Four technical fouls were called by early in the third quarter, though none after that as the Bucks began to assert themselves and take the mystery out of the game.
The tensions most notably began late in the first half when the Thunder’s Isaiah Hartenstein and the Bucks’ Andre Jackson Jr. got into a minor scuffle, each drawing a technical. Hartenstein took exception to Jackson hitting teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander below the waistline while he was in a shooting motion.
Hartenstein walked toward Jackson and pointed his right index finger at his face and Jackson slapped it away. Others then intervened to prevent the situation from escalating.
“If it would’ve happened to any other teammate, I would’ve done the same thing,” Hartenstein said. “The refs don’t call it, I have to take it into my own hands. Maybe the refs didn’t see it, but I saw it.”
But the most signficant moment occurred early in the third quarter when Oklahoma City’s Lu Dort and Daigneault were hit with technical fouls after a scrum for a loose ball. Milwaukee’s Damian Lillard made both free throws and then a 30-foot 3-pointer for five points in four seconds of game time for a 64-53 lead.
The Thunder didn’t really challenge after that.
“I made my point (to the officials),” Daigneault said. “I’m not going to get too far into it. I like those guys. They did a good job. They didn’t lose it for us.”
The Bucks did plenty on their own to win, and Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers said his team brought its own edge to the game, particularly on the defensive side.
OKC was held to its lowest point total of the season, and it wasn’t close. The Thunder’s previous low was in a 99-83 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Nov. 15. They entered this game averaging 115.6 points.
“One of the guys said yesterday all they heard was the defense of the other team,” Rivers said. “That’s all they heard for two days, and I think that bothered guys. They were very intent on trying to hold them to a low number.”
This is the second year the Cup has been played, and the inaugural edition that was then called the NBA In-Season Tournament was more of a feeling-out process for many clubs because of the newness of the event.
The second go-around brought a more intense dynamic that showed up not only in the final but also throughout group play and the knockout stage.
“I feel that teams cared about it a little bit more,” Lillard said. “I think teams played with a little bit more pride about trying to reach Vegas and having an opportunity to win at the end.”
TOP PHOTO: Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots against Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) during the first half of the championship game in the NBA Cup basketball tournament Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)