Big night by Giannis Antetokounmpo leads Bucks past Rockets
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[December 11, 2021] Giannis
Antetokounmpo put on a monster performance while Khris Middleton and
Bobby Portis Jr. played support roles as the Milwaukee Bucks
outlasted the host Houston Rockets 123-114 Friday, snapping the
Rockets' seven-game winning streak.
Antetokounmpo posted 41 points and 17 rebounds and added five
assists, three steals and two blocked shots. His ability to get
downhill caused the Rockets fits throughout and his fingerprints
were all over the Bucks' closing run to victory.
Antetokounmpo nailed a 3-pointer, assisted on a Portis corner 3, and
launched a ferocious dunk with 47.6 seconds left that pushed the
lead to 119-112.
Middleton added 21 points and eight boards, including a
second-chance basket and a 3-pointer with Antetokounmpo taking a
quick breather in the fourth. Portis also had 21 points and eight
boards.
The Rockets did not go quietly. Garrison Mathews scored a team-high
23 points with a career-high six 3-pointers, while Christian Wood
and Armoni Brooks chipped in 21 points apiece, with Wood also
grabbing 13 rebounds. Rookie Alperen Sengun added a career-high 15
points.
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Portis scored six points including a corner 3 during a 10-3 spurt
that enabled the Bucks to erase a seven-point halftime deficit.
But for every moment that Milwaukee seemed on the brink of snatching
momentum, the Rockets mustered a reply, and when Houston closed the
third quarter with 3-pointers from Brooks and Josh Christopher, it
led 95-90 entering the fourth period.
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![](../images/121121pics/sports47.jpg)
Milwaukee Bucks center DeMarcus Cousins (15) warms up before playing
against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit:
Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports
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Antetokounmpo was a terror early, scoring 10
first-quarter points on 5-of-7 shooting to lead a Milwaukee offense
that bullied the Rockets inside. The Bucks tallied 18 points in the
paint in the period and shot 10 of 12 inside the arc yet led by only
three points entering the second period.
That modest margin enabled the Rockets to claw ahead via a 17-4 run
that featured three Mathews 3-pointers, six points from Sengun and a
steal and transition dunk by David Nwaba.
Suddenly the Rockets led 46-38 and Milwaukee needed Middleton to get
hot in order to maintain contact. He obliged with 10 points in the
second quarter including a trio of 3-pointers.
Yet, despite Antetokounmpo and Middleton combining for 31 points on
11-for-18 shooting before the break, Houston led 65-58 following a
corner 3-pointer by Brooks. It came after Eric Gordon escaped a
double team and delivered a nifty cross-court pass to Brooks'
shooting pocket.
--Field Level Media
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