MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points and the Milwaukee Bucks used a big fourth quarter to pull away for a 129-118 victory over the short-handed Golden State Warriors on Saturday night.
The Warriors (18-21) rested Stephen Curry in the second night of a road back-to-back and are still without Draymond Green. Coach Steve Kerr said he could return from his suspension Monday in Memphis or Wednesday at Utah as the Warriors conclude their four-game trip.
Damian Lillard contributed 27 points and Khris Middleton added 24, including 13 in the fourth quarter, and also had 10 assists. Milwaukee sank 19 of 27 shots (70%) in the final period and outscored the Warriors 46-37.
“We were able to get stops and force them into tougher shots,” Middleton said. “I think we did a great job with that in the fourth quarter, pushing the pace a little bit and making sure we get the greatest shot.”
Golden State, led by Jonathan Kuminga and rookie point guard Brandin Podziemski, gave the Bucks all they could handle before Milwaukee secured the victory in the final minutes.
Kuminga finished with 28 points and Podziemski had 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting while adding 10 assists. Klay Thompson had 21 points.
Bucks rookie guard Andre Jackson Jr. posted his first pro double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes while making hustle plays all over the court.
“I’m watching a lot more film and coaches are sending me a lot more clips,” Jackson said. “I’m just looking for my scoring more in that dunker spot, make the defense be more honest and open up the game more for those superstar players I’ve got on my team.”
One of the highlights of the third quarter was Jackson’s block on Golden State center Trayce Jackson-Davis, a play which led to Lillard’s 3-pointer that gave the Bucks a 75-72 lead.
Middleton and Antetokounmpo went to work in the fourth as Milwaukee (27-12) improved to 18-3 at Fiserv Forum this season.
A rebound basket by Brook Lopez and an alley-oop from Middleton to Antetokounmpo gave the Bucks a 120-110 lead with 1:41 remaining and settled a back-and-forth contest.
“I thought our guys competed really hard, a tough back-to-back playing against a great team,” Kerr said. “We gave a great effort. The game slipped away from us in the fourth; they scored 46 points. I thought we had decent defensive control of the game until the fourth, and they got loose.”
Lillard was 9 of 19 from the field and 7 of 7 at the foul line while adding seven assists.
“I think that just shows our ability,” Lillard said of the big final quarter. “We can have stretches like that. It’s understanding the beauty of that but not leaning on that too much, because it’s not too often you can go into a quarter and say we’re going to make 19 field goals. That doesn’t happen often, no matter how good you are.”
The Bucks were 6 of 9 from 3-point range in the first quarter on the way to a 33-24 lead. But the Warriors rebounded for a 56-54 advantage at halftime.
Curry played 35 minutes and scored 27 points in Golden State’s 140-131 victory at Chicago on Friday night.
“He’s just wiped out right now,” Kerr said before the game. “We’ve been relying on him heavily and (he has played) a lot of games. He’s just worn out so he needs the night off.”
Green was reinstated by the league on Jan. 7 after missing 12 games following his suspension for striking Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic on Dec. 12. Green worked out on the court prior to the game.
“He’s been working out every day and he said he’s coming around and feeling good,” Kerr said.
