The Milwaukee Bucks fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in a thrilling game on Friday night. Lakers head coach Darvin Ham returned to the city where he once played and won a championship as an assistant coach, and came out a winner. The Lakers improved to 9-12 while the Bucks fell to 15-6. On the bright side, three-time All-Star Khris Middleton returned for Milwaukee after missing the first 20 games as he recovered from wrist surgery. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite enough to lift the Bucks past the Lakers.
Three Studs
Giannis Antetokounmpo
The two-time MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, did everything he could to keep the Bucks in the game. He finished the night with 40 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and a huge chase-down block on LeBron James. Giannis shot 16-23 from the floor (0-3 from three) and was 8-11 from the free throw line.
Giannis was whistled for taking longer than 10 seconds on a free throw attempt. Lakers sixth-man Russell Westbrook complained to the officials about Giannis’ free throw routine earlier in the game.
Giannis matched his career-long streak of 6 games with 30+ points.
40 PTS | 7 REB | 5 AST | 1 BLK pic.twitter.com/AK9nNQK7Wa
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 3, 2022
Jrue Holiday
There may not be a quieter star than Jrue Holiday. While all the attention was paid to Giannis and Middleton, and to Lakers stars LeBron and Anthony Davis, Holiday put up 28 points, nine assists, and six rebounds. He was 11-20 from the floor, including 6-12 from three.
Jrue set a new season-high with six 3-pointers tonight.
28 PTS | 6 REB | 9 AST pic.twitter.com/wg2fTyg0z7
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 3, 2022
Khris Middleton
What a special night it was for Khris Middleton! Not only did he make his long-awaited return to the court, but he also passed Marques Johnson for seventh on the Bucks’ all-time scoring list. Middleton played just 26 minutes in his first game back, scoring 17 points on 6-11 shooting, including 3-4 from three. He added seven assists and two rebounds as well.
Khris made his return to the court tonight.
17 PTS | 2 REB | 7 AST | 3-4 3PM pic.twitter.com/gMCAWWyNlA
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 3, 2022
Three Duds
I’m going to cheat a little here. First of all, the Bucks’ rebounding was lacking urgency against the Lakers. Simply put, they were out-hustled on the boards.
Secondly, the “three-and-D” players, Wes Matthews and Pat Connaughton, were particularly off against the Lakers. They combined to go 3-12 from the floor (2-9 from three), and Connaughton accounted for all the made baskets between the two.
Finally, George Hill was virtually unplayable against the strong, fast, and athletic Lakers team. He only received nine minutes of playing time, but looked so out of place every time he was on the court. There was no one player he could guard and not be over-powered by, and he could not get open on the offensive end.
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