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Giannis Antetokounmpo is forced to leave the Bucks’ game against the Heat in the first quarter with a knee problem, but his team still posts a resounding 128-99 victory.
Giannis Antetokounmpo left late in the first quarter with a right knee problem that marred his quick comeback from a sprained wrist, but the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Miami Heat 128-99 on Friday for their 13th straight win. .
Antetokounmpo started just four days later He is heading to New York to have his right wrist examined. The two-time MVP was on the court late in the first quarter when passed the ball and immediately went to the bench when the Bucks called a timeout to allow him to head to the locker room.
Bucks officials said in the second quarter that Antetokounmpo had hit his knees on an opponent and would not return to the game. He had four points, four rebounds and four assists in just six minutes.
The Bucks still had no trouble extending the longest winning streak in the NBA this season. The Bucks went ahead for a good four minutes of play and posted their biggest win of the season.
Jrue Holiday scored 24 points and received perhaps his biggest ovation of the night when scoreboard video caught him joining the crowd singing the Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” during a timeout late in the fourth quarter.
The Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo left late in the first quarter with a right knee problem
Holiday also had seven assists and five rebounds while shooting 5-of-9 from 3-point range.
Bobby Portis had 18 points and 11 rebounds in his return from a sprained right MCL that caused him to miss 11 games. Brook Lopez had 17 points, Grayson Allen 16 and Khris Middleton 12.
Jimmy Butler scored 23, Bam Adebayo 18, Tyler Herro 14 and Caleb Martin 13 for the Heat, who shot just 9-for-40 on 3-point attempts.
Kevin Love and Cody Zeller made their Heat debut after signing with Miami during the All-Star break. Love, which had come to a buys with the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was in the starting lineup but did not score in his first appearance in a game in a month.
He did have eight rebounds and four assists in 22 minutes. Zeller was playing his first game of the season and scored 10 points in 16 minutes.
Jae Crowder, Acquired at the trade deadline, he made his debut in 2022-23 with the Bucks and scored nine points in 16 minutes. Crowder hadn’t played for Phoenix at all this season when the Suns tried to trade him.