MILWAUKEE (AP) — Khris Middleton played for just the seventh time this season, scoring 21 points, but without Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, the Milwaukee Bucks couldn’t hold of Brooklyn.
The Nets rallied late for a 111-105 victory in Milwaukee on Thursday night.
It was the third consecutive game the Bucks didn’t have their two superstars. They shot 51% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc to keep pace with Brooklyn, but the Nets, who had lost eight of 10, nailed 16 of 38 3s to pull out the win.
Key Moment
After trailing the entire second half, Brooklyn rattled off a 7-0 run late in the fourth to pull ahead 99-97. After Middleton scored to tie it, the Nets pulled ahead with a 3-pointer from Clowney and went up by four when Claxton split a pair of free throws with 1:57 to play. Middleton’s 3 made it a one-possession game but Johnson converted a four-point play on the other end to put the Nets up 109-102 with 47 seconds to play.
Takeaways
Nets: Brooklyn snapped a three-game losing streak at Milwaukee, where its most recent victory had been Feb. 26, 2022. The Nets return on Jan. 2 for the final meeting between the teams looking to clinch their first season series victory in four years.
Bucks: Brook Lopez has scored 10 or more points in each of his last five games and has 41 points in his last two.
Key Stat
Lopez scored 11 straight points in the second quarter but had just two points after halftime.
Up Next
The Bucks travel to Chicago to face the Bulls on Saturday night, while the Nets return to Brooklyn to host San Antonio before heading back out on the road to close out 2024.
TOP PHOTO: FILE – Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, right, high fives Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard (0) before the start of a preseason NBA basketball game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Sarah Phipps)