© Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Miami Heat to advance to the knockout round of NBA Cup
The Milwaukee Bucks advanced to the knockout round of the In-Season Tournament after they pulled off a hard-fought 131-124 win over the Miami Heat on Tuesday night.
The Bucks ruled the East Group B of the NBA Cup by winning all of their four games as they forged a knockout quarterfinal match against the wild-card New York Knicks.
Dynamic duo strikes again
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard wrought havoc once again as they scored at least 30 points each for the third straight game.
The Greek Freak finished with 33 points, while Dame scored 32, helping the Bucks improve to 13-5 in the season with their third straight victory. Antetokounmpo also grabbed ten rebounds for his 11th double-double of the season.
Khris Middleton returned from a one-game absence due to Achilles tendinitis with a 17-point performance. Malik Beasley added 16 points and ten rebounds, while Brook Lopez pitched in 12.
The Heat played without Jimmy Butler, but they were able to claw back from a 13-point deficit and took a 97-93 lead with only one quarter left.
Khris turns clutch at the finish
Milwaukee found a way to escape with its second win against Miami this season by ending the game on a 16-6 run, highlighted by Middleton's crucial back-to-back buckets in the closing seconds.
Middleton broke a 118-all tie with a shot clock-beating jumper and added a fade-away jumper that gave the Bucks a 122-118 lead with 1:38 left.
Antetokounmpo and Lillard helped the Bucks put the game away by combining for five made free throws in the final 1:18.
Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 31 points, while Kyle Lowry added 21. Josh Richardson chipped in 21 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Caleb Martin scored 14 apiece, while Duncan Robinson added 13 for the Heat, who dropped to 10-8 with their third-straight loss. The loss also snapped Miami’s four-game winning streak at home.
