The Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls will tip off on Wednesday night. Both teams are coming off of victories, but the Bucks (12-4) are in a much better position than the Bulls (7-10). Chicago’s win against the Boston Celtics on Monday night snapped a four-game losing streak. They will face a tall task in trying to record a second consecutive win. The two teams have played 15 times since Mike Budenholzer was named head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks. In that time, the Bucks have gone 14-1 against the Bulls. Of course, Milwaukee also boasts two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, who has dominated the Bulls over the course of his career. Here, we’ll take a look at five of his best games against the rivals from Chicago.
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#5. March 22, 2022: Bucks 126, Bulls 98
Imagine what Giannis would do if he played more than 30 minutes per game. He only needed 30 minutes in this contest against Chicago to put up 25 points, 17 rebounds, five assists, one steal, and three blocks. Giannis was 9-12 from the field, which included 1-2 from three. He also knocked down six of the nine free throws that he attempted.
In total, seven Bucks players scored in double-figures in this game. Jrue Holiday led them all with 27 points. In addition to him and Giannis, Pat Connaughton and Serge Ibaka had double-figures off the bench. The other Bucks starters, Wes Matthews, Brook Lopez, and Grayson Allen, also scored in double-figures.
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#4. December 31, 2016: Bucks 116, Bulls 96
We’re going back to the pre-Budenholzer days for this game. Remember when Jabari Parker and Giannis were going to be the NBA’s best young duo? Well, this game sure gave fans a glimpse of what could have been if Parker’s knees had cooperated. The duo dominated Chicago on New Years Eve in one of the most remarkable games that they played together.
Giannis had an incredible game, putting up 35 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, and SEVEN blocks. He also added a steal. It was a good shooting night for him, too, as he was 13-19 from the floor (1-1 from three) and 8-11 from the free throw line. Parker added 27 points on 10-15 shooting (1-3 from three) and was 6-6 from the line. In addition to these two, Malcolm Brogdon had a triple-double, putting up 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists.
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#3. November 28, 2018: Bucks 116, Bulls 113
Unlike the previous two games on this list, this contest was not an easy win for the Bucks. Milwaukee needed every one of Giannis’ 36 points to hold off the Bulls. Giannis was 14-21 from the floor (0-3 from three) and 8-12 from the free throw line. He also added 11 rebounds, eight assists, two steals, and a block.
One impressive performance from this game was that of Malcolm Brogdon. The Bucks guard had 24 points on 8-11 shooting, which included a perfect 6-6 from three.
#2. February 11, 2019: Bucks 112, Bulls 99
The very next time the Bucks played the Bulls, Giannis and his team went out and gave a much more balanced effort. Giannis was a force on the glass and on defense, grabbing 17 rebounds and blocking three shots to go along with 29 points and eight assists.
In addition to Giannis’ dominance, Brogdon had another good game with 17 points on 5-9 shooting (3-5 from three). Eric Bledsoe added 19 points, and Khris Middleton had 16.
#1. January 20, 2020: Bucks 111, Bulls 98
Oh, to go back to January of 2020 before the pandemic shut everything down! As many Bucks fans may recall, Milwaukee was CRUISING through the regular season with as dominant a team as they had ever had. This particular win over the Bulls gave the Bucks a 39-6 record at the time. Unfortunately, we all know what ended up happening. On the bright side, Giannis and the Bucks brought a NBA Championship to Milwaukee in 2021. Had the pandemic not happened, it may have happened a year early.
As you may have noticed, Giannis finished two assists shy of a triple-double in each of the previous three games mentioned on this list. Well, this was the game in which he finally was able to notch that triple-double. In this dominant victory over Chicago, Giannis had 28 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists. He was 12-20 from the field (1-5 from three) and just 3-9 from the line. Middleton, though, had the hot shooting hand, scoring 24 points on 10-13 shooting (3-4 from three).
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