After blowing a 21-point lead over the final 3:06 of the fourth quarter, the Milwaukee Bucks escaped with a 104-101 win over the Raptors on Wednesday. It wasn’t the prettiest of performances, but Giannis Antetokounmpo, yet again put up a monster line: 30 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists. In case tracking Antetokounmpo’s box scores hasn’t been high on your priority list of late, have a look at his previous three outings leading into Wednesday.
- Against Wizards: 55 Points, 10 Rebounds, 7 Assists
- Against Timberwolves: 43 Points, 20 Rebounds, 5 Assists
- Against Bulls: 45 Points, 22 Rebounds, 7 Assists
Throw in a positively pedestrian 27 points, nine rebounds and three assists on Christmas, and that’s 203 points, 94 rebounds and three assists for Antetokounmpo over his last five games. Those numbers haven’t been reached over any-five game stretch since Kareem Abdul Jabbar did half a century ago.
Talking Numbers
Since we’re talking numbers, I’d be remiss not to note that Antetokounmpo recorded a rather dubious quadrable-double on Wednesday, adding 12 turnovers to his ledger. Per Stat Head, only three players in NBA history have committed more turnovers in a single game: Jason Kidd, (14), John Drew (14), and Chris Mullin (13).
It’s a fitting scenario into what was nearly an epic collapse by the Bucks, who, over the final three minutes of the fourth quarter, coughed up five turnovers (including a five-second violation), gave up four offensive rebounds, committed a flagrant foul and missed three free throws. That’s how a 90-60 advantage turns into a 97-97 tie heading into overtime.
But as they say, all’s well that ends well, and Grayson Allen, after an outrageous pass from Antetokounmpo, sent Milwaukee home on a high note with what proved to be the game-winning 3-pointer with under 11 seconds to play in overtime.
The Game-Winning Pass
It warrants repeating that pass, Antetokounmpo’s tenth assist of the night, was incredible. Giannis looked out of control, which he often does, but he gathered all his coordination as he was falling out of bounds to deliver the backhanded warp-around bullet pass into Allen’s shooting pocket that only a handful of people on Earth can pull off. That’s special stuff. And it got the Bucks a victory that should’ve secured about a half hour earlier.
