Rapid Recap: Bucks 142, Wizards 129

On a Monday night in the nation’s capital, the Milwaukee Bucks prevailed in a defenseless slugfest over the Washington Wizards for their fifth-straight W, 142-129. Giannis Antetokounmpo continued his recent stretch of high-production nights with a 42/13/8 effort, only missing three of his 23 shots. Jordan Poole had 30 for the Wizards.

NBA.com Box Score

Game Recap

Though they started slow, the Bucks soon erased an early eight-point deficit behind a combined 23 points from Damian Lillard and Giannis, entering the second ahead 31-27. That quarter proved very high-scoring as neither side did much of anything to protect the rim. Milwaukee briefly held a fourteen-point edge before Washington stormed back with a 21-12 run, leaving the visitors clinging to a 70-65 halftime advantage.

The Wiz kept it in single digits throughout the third period as Kyle Kuzma started feeling it inside and outside, with his squad down just 104-102 after three. Washington briefly grabbed the lead in the early stages of the final stanza, but Milwaukee finally started playing some defense and used a 12-1 run midway through to separate and close this one out.

Stat That Stood Out

Defensive rebounding has been a significant issue for the Bucks so far this year, but they only conceded five offensive boards tonight to the ‘zards, thus leading 27-9 in terms of second-chance points. With how poorly they defended inside, that loomed large.

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