Brook Lopez scored 27 points as the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 127-108 on Monday night to extend their winning streak to eight games.
The Bucks, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo, had 24 points and 13 rebounds, pushing their lead to 26 in the second half. Damian Lillard led the Blazers with 28 points.
For his second straight POTW honor, Lillard averaged 38.3 points and 6.8 assists, while Antetokounmpo averaged 41 points and 17.3 rebounds. Antetokounmpo started despite a sore right knee. His triple-double on Saturday led the Bucks to a 123-115 win over Miami with 35 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists.
With center Jusuf Nurkic out with a left calf strain, Portland struggled against the bigger Bucks after losing to Chicago 129-121 on Saturday.
Milwaukee led by 15 at halftime, but Lillard hit a 3-pointer from about two feet inside the half-court line that drew gasps and cheers from the home crowd. Milwaukee led at halftime 58-48 as Lopez scored 17 points. He hit a 3-pointer with 10:41 left to record his 15,000 career points. The Bucks led 95-71 at the end of the third period with a 22-8 run.
… The Bucks won their first of two meetings with the Blazers this season, 119-111, in Milwaukee. … It was the opener of a three-game road trip. … The Bucks have won nine games so far this season. WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert met with Trail Blazers GM Joe Cronin for a roundtable to pitch Portland as a potential WNBA expansion city. Oregon State coach Scott Rueck and Kelly Graves were also present.
As a result of weather-related flight delays that forced the Washington Wizards’ game to be postponed on Feb. 1, a few adjustments have been made to the NBA schedule, impacting the Bucks and Blazers. In Milwaukee, the game originally scheduled for March 6 has been moved to March 5, while Portland’s game is now scheduled for March 6 instead of March 7. On March 7, the Wizards will play a makeup game against Detroit.
