Bulls are no match for Bucks
CHICAGO — Giannis Antetokounmpo dominated with 46 points and 16 rebounds and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Chicago Bulls 113-97 on Friday night.
The Bucks led by 14 at halftime and went on a 17-0 run after Chicago pulled within eight early in the fourth on the way to their fifth straight victory. Milwaukee is 8-7 since Doc Rivers took over as coach for the fired Adrian Griffin.
Antetokounmpo had six assists and made two 3-pointers.
Damian Lillard scored 16 points. Patrick Beverley added 14 points to help the Bucks beat the Bulls for the third time in four games this season.
Chicago’s DeMar DeRozan became the 35th player in NBA history with 23,000 points. The six-time All-Star scored 12 points — all but two in the second half — and was 5 of 13 from the field after missing his first six shots.
Coby White scored 22 points. Nikola Vucevic had 17 points and nine before getting ejected early in the fourth quarter. Upset over a no-call when he missed a shot, he then delivered a hard foul on a driving A.J. Green and got thrown out with 9:27 remaining.
It was 84-76 after White hit two foul shots just under a minute into the fourth. But Green hit a 3 and the Bucks buried the Bulls from there.
Antetokounmpo had 23 points and eight rebounds as the Bucks grabbed a 58-44 halftime lead.
The two-time MVP simply had his way, whether he was making layups and dunks or setting up his teammates. He delivered a highlight reel play in the opening minutes when he drove and flipped a no-look, over-the-shoulder pass to Brook Lopez near the top of the key for a 3.
The Bucks led by 15 in the first quarter before the Bulls pulled within four early in the second. Milwaukee outscored Chicago 14-6 over the final four minutes of the half to break open a six-point game. Lillard started that spurt with a finger roll and two free throws.
Antetokounmpo had an alleyoop layup in the closing minute to make it a 13-point game. DeRozan then got his first two points for Chicago when he made two free throws, but Jae Crowder nailed a corner 3 at the buzzer to send the Bucks to the locker room with a 14-point lead.
Rivers said Khris Middleton is “really close” to returning from a sprained left ankle. The threetime All-Star missed his 10th game in a row.
“The last three days have been excellent,” Rivers said.