MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 35 points, Jrue Holiday added 31 and Milwaukee beat Sacramento 126-113 on Wednesday night for the Bucks’ 13th consecutive victory over the Kings.
The streak is Milwaukee’s longest active streak against an opponent. The Bucks have won 12 straight against Orlando.
“What’s disappointing for me is this one of the first times I felt we played a game and our opponent dictated from the beginning of the game how the night was going to go,” Kings coach Mike Brown said. “I didn’t think they felt us at all defensively. Our defense was almost a glorified scrimmage game, a pick-up game. Milwaukee went where they wanted to go, they did what they wanted to do.”
Domantas Sabonis had 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Kings, who had won their last three. Harrison Barnes had 20 points, and Malik Monk added 16.
Brook Lopez had 17 points and nine rebounds and Khris Middleton added 14 points for the Bucks. They won their third straight to improve to 18-6.
Sacramento, which scored 61 points in the first half, managed just 19 in the fourth quarter.
“Just keep making them make one extra pass, one extra drive and kick,” Antetokounmpo said about the fourth-quarter defense. “We just tried to make it as tough as possible.”
Davion Mitchell’s layup brought the Kings to 99-98 early in the fourth quarter, but the Bucks pushed it the back to 109-101 on a 3-pointer by Grayson Allen with 7:14 remaining.
“I think one of the things that stands out to me is a little bit of the ball movement and really kind of, like, back-breaker 3-pointers,” Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said. “Sacramento, they’re working defensively, they’re rotating, they’re scrambling - when you’re able to make that extra drive, that extra kick and somebody makes a three kind of deep in the shot clock, that stood out to me.”
Antetokounmpo scored on consecutive drives to put the Bucks up 117-105 with 4:40 left.
“We blew a lot of assignments,” Brown said. “When it’s a two-point game or one-point, we blew two or three assignments in a row to where they stretch it to a 10-point game.”
Antetokounmpo hit 12 of 19 shots and 9 of 10 free throws to give him a career-best eight consecutive games of 30 or more points.
“I like the way he’s playing with his teammates, the way he’s sharing it, the way he’s passing it,” Budenholzer said. “Organically, it comes back to him playing a litlte bit more off the ball, a lot of DHO’s (dribble handoffs) and stuff like that. He’s getting points, but I think he’s playing the right way and just taking what the game gives him and playing with his teammates.”
TIP-INS
Kings: G Terence Davis was out again with lower back soreness
Bucks: G Wesley Matthews was added to the injury report for health and safety protocols.
UP NEXT
Kings: At Cleveland on Friday night.
Bucks: At Dallas on Friday night.
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