The Phoenix Suns also extended their winning streak against the Pacers. Although Devin Booker caught a weak evening, the strong collective of the currently best team in the league jumped in. There are heated scenes between the Cavs and the Thunder, the Bucks let it rain threesomes.
Milwaukee Bucks (30-19) – Sacramento Kings (18-30) 133:127 (BOXSCORE)
- Even without Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was sidelined with a knee problem, the reigning champion has recovered well from the shooting issues against the Bulls the previous day. While Milwaukee still had big problems with the distance shot, the Bucks now sank 21 three-pointers on the way to their third win in a row.
- Nevertheless, there was still a little trembling in the final minutes. Milwaukee took control with a dominant second quarter (35:19) and pulled away by 15 points in the second half. The guests from California made it exciting again in the final minutes. They crawled to within 3 points before Khris Middleton sank a clutch three with 69 seconds left. A Driving Dunk von Jrue Holiday and sure hands from the free-throw line then brought the victory home.
- Without Giannis, Middleton took the brunt on offense, scoring 14 points in the fourth quarter alone and ending the game with 34 points on 12/20 from the field and 5/7 three-pointers. In addition to Holiday (26), role players such as Donte DiVincenzo (20), Pat Connaughton (15, 5/10 threesomes) and George Hill (17) also provided support.
- Among the Kings, who were without De’Aaron Fox (ankle), the trio of Harrison Barnes (29), Tyrese Haliburton (24 and 12 assists, 5/8 threes) and Terence Davis (22) defended most successfully. Especially in the final section, in which Sacramento added 41 points, Haliburton and Barnes put the pressure on again. But that was not enough to prevent the third bankruptcy in a row.
Cleveland Cavaliers (28-19) – Oklahoma City Thunder (14-32) 94:87 (BOXSCORE)
- Cleveland was not really satisfied after the success against the Thunder. “We take the win, but that was a pretty disappointing game for us,” said head coach JB Bickerstaff. He probably meant primarily the possibly more serious injury to Lauri Markkanen, who had to go out in the second quarter with a sprained ankle. Or the fact that the Cavs missed 21 of 27 three-point attempts and 17 (!) free throws.
- The home side had Darius Garland to thank for the fact that they were still able to win. The point guard fueled an 18:5 run with 13 points in the third quarter alone, which gave Cleveland the decisive advantage. The lead grew to 17 points and the Cavs trembled across the finish line in the fourth quarter due to the issues raised. OKC came back to 6 points in the final minutes, but Cleveland kept the upper hand.
- Garland had a total of 23 points and 11 assists, while Evan Mobley (15 and 17 rebounds, career-high) and Jarrett Allen (14 and 13) each had a double-double. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 29 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists, while Kenrich Williams had 12 points.
- Things got hot again in the fourth quarter when Luguentz hit Dort with his elbow in a small pack formation. While attempting to break free from Cavs big Kevin Love after battling for a loose ball, he hit him on the shoulder, which briefly led to heated scenes. There, a flagrant foul II was finally sent off the field.
Phoenix Suns (36-9) – Indiana Pacers (17-30) 113:103 (BOXSCORE)
- It didn’t all work out for the Suns after all. When Devin Booker tried to icing on an already assured win against Indiana in the final minute by hammering a crashing Windmill dunk through the trap, the ring objected. In general, it wasn’t necessarily the evening of the shooting guard, but the depth of the Suns still ensured the sixth win in a row – the current best series in the association.
- There was Chris Paul, for example, who orchestrated the Suns offense with 18 points (8/11 FG), 16 assists and 4 steals in the well-known excellent manner. There was a Mikal Bridges sinking 10/15 field shots en route to 23 points. There was a JaVale McGee hitting a double-double (13 and 12 rebounds) as a backup starter for Deandre Ayton (ankle), or a Bismack Biyombo hitting his career-high (21, plus 13 rebounds and 5 assists at 9/12 FG).
- Booker’s problems (11, 5/23 FG) were made up for by the home team collectively. In the third quarter, the Suns took control (33:20), when Indiana reduced from a 22-point deficit to -6 in the last round, Cameron Johnson answered from downtown and a booker floater closed the sack shortly afterwards. However, there were two downsides: Both Jae Crowder and Cam Payne had to leave the court early with wrist injuries.
- There was a minor setback for Indiana after wins against the Lakers and Warriors, in which Lance Stephenson (7/9 FG) and Chris Duarte each scored 17 points. Otherwise, the weakened guests, who in addition to Myles Turner in the person of Domantas Sabonis (ankle), Malcolm Brogdon (Achilles tendon) and Caris LeVert (calf) also had to do without the three best scorers, Goga Bitadze still got 16 points and 11 boards.
