Washington Wizards forward Corey Kispert (24) gets past Milwaukee Bucks forward Khris Middleton (22) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 2, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
WASHINGTON — Corey Kispert scored 27 points and Deni Avdija added 23 to help the Washington Wizards beat the Milwaukee Bucks 117-113 on Tuesday night in the NBA despite Giannis Antetokounmpo’s triple-double.
Antetokounmpo had 35 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists and reached double figures in all three categories by the end of the third quarter. That wasn’t enough for Milwaukee, which came into the night with a 2 1/2-game lead over Cleveland for the No. 2 seed in the NBA Eastern Conference.
Jordan Poole had 16 points and a career-high 13 assists for Washington, and Jared Butler provided a lift off the bench with 17 points. Tristan Vukcevic, a 7-foot rookie from Serbia whom the Wizards signed in the middle of last month, scored 14. His previous career high was six.
“It’s a step forward, maybe two steps forward,” Kispert said. “This is the attitude we need to have and the aggression we need to have when we play these kind of games, especially against a championship team like this. Super proud of everybody who played tonight.”
JP ➡️ CK
11 assists for JP so far. 🤝 pic.twitter.com/4KdiGDtSnm
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) April 3, 2024
The Wizards led 58-54 at halftime, then began the third quarter on a 12-1 run to stretch the lead to 15. Milwaukee shot 11 of 48 from 3-point range on the night, but the Bucks finally made a few near the end of the third, including Jae Crowder’s shot at the buzzer that cut the lead to five.
“We can’t get better shots, as far as the 3s we had,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “Our best 3-point shooters were wide open. … But we missed a lot of them.”
It was down to two in the fourth, but Washington was able to hold on. A 3-pointer by Kispert made it 113-106, and with Milwaukee down by four in the final minute, Antetokounmpo lost the ball inside.
The Bucks got it back and called timeout with 21.9 seconds remaining. Khris Middleton made a layup, but Anthony Gill got free behind Milwaukee’s press for a layup with 8.3 seconds to play that pushed the lead back to four.
Too tough 💪 pic.twitter.com/LlXd3S9F0A
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) April 3, 2024
“They crushed us in transition. This is what they do,” Rivers said. “We had inexcusable transition ‘D’ plays to start the third quarter. Three or four times they snuck from behind us, they drove us. Yeah, it’s a disappointing loss.”
The Bucks are 18-20 on the road.
“We don’t bring the necessary professionalism, seriousness, on the road,” Rivers said. “That’s something that we can fix. That’s something that we’re going to have to fix.”
Milwaukee was playing without star guard Damian Lillard (right groin strain), and Kyle Kuzma (right heel contusion) was out for the Wizards. Rivers said Lillard could be back as early as Wednesday night.
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The Bucks lost Patrick Beverley in the third quarter after Poole slipped while driving to the basket and fell into Beverley’s left leg. Both players were shaken up, although Poole was able to play on. Rivers said he thought Beverley sprained his ankle.
NEXT SCHEDULE
Bucks: Host Memphis on Wednesday night.
Wizards: Host the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night.
