A Damian Lillard masterclass wins the season series over Philly
Down Giannis, who is sidelined through the All-Star break with a left calf strain, the Milwaukee Bucks notched their third win of the season over the Philadelphia 76ers behind a scintillating a season-high 43/8/8 performance from Damian Lillard. Tyrese Maxey paced the visitors with 39.
Game Recap
Embiid started perfect from the field (as did the Sixers on their first four shots) with 15 early points, hitting three triples, but Lillard’s nine kept the scoreboard moving. Each side traded buckets for much of the period until a 13-2 Sixers run put them ahead seven. Fueled by Gary Trent Jr., a 12-4 Milwaukee run got them back into the game, and Kuzma swirled in a layup at the buzzer to put them up 40-39 after one. Maxey one-upped Embiid with 19 in 12 minutes.
That first-quarter shootout didn’t last. Milwaukee managed to jump in front by seven early in the second as Philly cooled off slightly, but their big three caught them back up when the home squad got caught in a slump halfway through. Out of a timeout with 4:05 until half, both teams broke out of their scoring doldrums with a 7-0 run for the Bucks and an 8-0 run for the Sixers. A Trent buzzer-beating three took the Bucks into the locker room up 65-63. Maxey poured in 26 in the first half, with Embiid just two behind.
No third quarter funk today. While back-to-back triples from Brook Lopez and Dame put the Bucks up eight, the Sixers answered both of them. But Lillard’s personal 9-0 run gave the Bucks their first double-digit lead midway through the frame. When he was going for 11 on a drive inside, Tyrese Maxey came in from the weak side to block it, resulting in a George three on the other end. Undeterred, Dame keyed a quick 8-0 run for Milwaukee after Philly cut it to four, growing their advantage to as much as 13. Through three, the Bucks led 103-91 behind Dame’s 15 third-quarter points, getting him up to 34.
Dame buried another longball seconds into the fourth, and back-to-back from GTJ gave the Bucks a 19-point edge. A 12-0 Bucks run made it a 25-point game as the Sixers played sloppily and couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. Philadelphia did come back to within 12 just past the four-minute mark as Milwaukee’s defense was caught sleeping several times, and they couldn’t find nylon. Some late life from Maxey with the game mostly in control cut it to nine with under a minute to go until Nick Nurse emptied his bench with 44 seconds left. Embiid scored only three points in the second half.
Stat That Stood Out
With how much trouble the Bucks have had on the glass lately, they were outstanding today, outrebounding the Sixers 53-42. Even more rare, for a team last in the league in this category was their 19 offensive rebounds. That led to 21 second-chance opportunities, from which they scored a stellar 31 points.
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