Josh Hart, Jalen Brunson push Knicks past Bucks in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return
The Knicks won Friday’s NBA Cup game against the Bucks, 118-109, for their third straight victory while extending Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Milwaukee’s seven-game skid.
Takeaway
For the third straight game, the Knicks started Jalen Brunson, Miles McBride, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart AND City of Karl-Anthony. Mike BrownThe move paid off especially with Hart, who gave the Knicks (12-6) a boost in the first half by scoring 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting and adding six rebounds and two assists. Hart finished with a double-double of 19 points, 15 rebounds, plus seven assists, and continues to grow after tallying 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting, eight rebounds and seven assists in Wednesday’s 129-101 win against the Charlotte Hornets.
Another notable contributor in the lineup was McBride, who shook up the Knicks with 19 points on 5-of-7 shooting from deep to complement Brunson’s backcourt scoring. Among McBride’s big shots was his 3-pointer with 2:53 left, an immediate and necessary response after Kyle Kuzmathree minutes earlier he had cut the Knicks’ lead to 107-105 at the 3:16 mark.
Speaking of Brunson, the Knicks’ catalyst delivered a close game, dropping 15 first-half points while the Bucks (8-12) held a 62-61 halftime lead. Brunson especially woke up in the third quarter, scoring 16 of his game-high 37 points (12-of-21 shooting) during a 31-26 stretch in which the Knicks outscored the Bucks. Before the Bucks closed the gap on the Knicks in a hotly contested final six minutes of the fourth quarter, New York’s largest lead of 101-88 at the 10:40 mark, fueled by Brunson’s heat check in the third quarter.
The Knicks advance to the NBA Cup quarterfinals after winning Group C East. By beating the Bucks, who won the NBA Cup last year, there will be a new winner this season. Also of note, Milwaukee’s seventh straight loss is its longest slide since the 2013-14 season, when it suffered several long slides and went 15-67.
Who is the MVP?
Antetokounmpo, who was questionable with an abductor strain but willed the Bucks with 30 points on 10-of-14 shooting while adding 15 rebounds and eight assists in 28 minutes of what was his first game since Nov. 17.
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What’s the next step?
The Knicks host the Toronto Raptors on Sunday at 6 pm. The Raptors (14-5) enter Saturday’s 6 pm game against the Charlotte Hornets with nine consecutive victories.