The Milwaukee Bucks won a hard-fought duel against the Atlanta Hawks at the start of MLK Days. Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder’s injury worries are growing, while the Clippers remain the hottest team in the league.
Bucks salvage victory against Atlanta in overtime
Both teams got off to a terrible start, missing almost everything they attempted from the field, which is why the scoreboard showed a meager 39 points in total after the first twelve minutes (20-19 Bucks). After the first break, things improved for the visitors, who went on a 27-6 run and pulled away by 23 points at one stage.
For the Hawks, on the other hand, nothing continued to go right. They simply couldn’t hit a three-pointer, which caused their entire offensive game to stagnate. It wasn’t until a few seconds before halftime that CJ McCollum redeemed his team with the first downtown shot on the Hawks’ 23rd three-point attempt of the game. The fans cheered the successful shot sarcastically, and the Hawks went into the break trailing 38-54.
Led by the strong Jalen Johnson (28 points, 16 rebounds) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (32), Atlanta came out of the break much improved and finally started hitting reliably from outside, bringing them back to within two possessions in the fourth quarter. A three-pointer by NAW then brought Atlanta to within one point with two minutes left on the clock, before McCollum secured the first lead since the start of the first quarter from the free throw line. The shooting star lost the ball while bringing it up the court, Milwaukee played quickly up front, and Giannis Antetokounmpo gave them a four-point lead with a layup. Alexander-Walker hit another important three-pointer (7 in total), but McCollum dribbled away the potential game winner.
Giannis was also the Bucks’ dominant player with 21 points and 17 rebounds, but the Greek once again struggled at the free throw line (6/11). He was supported by Bobby Portis (19) and AJ Green (18).
OKC showed a strong performance after their surprising defeat to the Heat, although the Cavaliers didn’t put up much resistance. The Cavs led 6-5 early on, but then could only watch as the champs’ lead grew bit by bit. OKC led by 15 at halftime and by 20 shortly after the break.
The main problem for Cleveland that evening was their shooting. They shot a meager 37.4 percent from the field and 22.9 percent from outside, and also turned the ball over 21 times, quickly thwarting any comeback attempts. On the other hand, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander put in his usual dominant performance (30 points), supported by the strong Chet Holmgren (28 points). As a team, the Thunder shot almost 50 percent from downtown (23/47).
However, injury concerns are growing for the Thunder. Before the game, it was announced that Jalen Williams would be out for several weeks with a thigh injury, and now Alex Caruso (groin) and Jaylin Williams (lower back) have also been injured during the game. Both were unable to continue playing and immediately went to the locker room for further examination.
Superstar Donovan Mitchell disappointed for the Cavs, shooting just 5/18 from the field for 19 points. Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen each contributed 16 points.
The Clippers remain the hottest team in the league and have now won their sixth game in a row. However, the game against the Wizards was closer than the L.A. team would have liked. It went back and forth for a long time before things got hectic in the final stages. With one minute left on the clock, Khris Middleton drew a foul on Nic Batum on a three-point shot and converted all three free throws to tie the game. In response, James Harden did the same, drawing a foul on a drive with 36 seconds left and converting both attempts. Kyshawn George’s subsequent jumper missed, as did his three-point attempt for the potential win. 17.9 3P%), with Harden the only reliable scorer (36 points, 7 rebounds, 9 assists). On the other side, the Clippers had no answer for big man Alex Sarr (28 points), with George (18) and Bub Carrington (17) providing further scoring.