By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Just hours after the announcement about Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kristaps Porzingis being players of the week, Milwaukee and Dallas couldn’t get the win.
Jae Crowder and Jimmy Butler each scored 18 points, Slovenian Goran Dragic added 15 and the Heat beat the Bucks 105-89, moving to 2-0 against the NBA’s best team.
The difference was from the 3-point line: Miami was 18 for 37, Milwaukee was 7 for 34. Giannis Antetokounmpo matched a season-low with 13 points on 6 for 18 shooting and grabbed 15 rebounds and when he was asked about the MVP race, that was the last thing on his mind.
Coby White scored 19 points, Otto Porter Jr. added 18 in his return from a broken left foot and the Chicago Bulls hung on to beat the Dallas Mavericks 109-107 when Luka Doncic’s desperation heave bounced off the rim.
The Slovenian boy-wonder scored 23 after sitting out Sunday’s win at Minnesota because of a sprained left thumb, however, Latvian Kristaps Porzingis missed the game.
Malcolm Brogdon scored 26 points, T.J. Warren added 23 and the Pacers rallied to beat the Spurs 116-111. Lithuanian Domantas Sabonis had nine of his 14 points in the final quarter.
Another Lithuanian, Jonas Valanciunas, had 15 points and 15 rebounds for the Grizzlies in the 127-88 win over Atlanta, as Memphis remains in the top eight teams of the West.
CJ McCollum scored 41 points and Gary Trent Jr. added 24 to help the Portland Trail Blazers run away from the Orlando Magic 130-107. Montenegrin big man Nikola Vucevic led Orlando with 30 points and 11 rebounds.
Rookie guard RJ Barrett tied his season-high with 27 points and the Knicks held on for a 125-123 victory over the Rockets, snapping Houston’s six-game winning streak.
Last but not least, Croatian Bojan Bogdanovic scored 28 points, French Rudy Gobert added 20 and the Utah Jazz began a four-game trip against Eastern Conference teams with a 126-113 win over the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers who got 14 points by Turkish forward Cedi Osman.
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. x-Milwaukee Bucks 52-9
2. Toronto Raptors 42-18
3. Boston Celtics 41-18
4. Miami Heat 39-22
5. Philadelphia 76ers 37-24
6. Indiana Pacers 37-24
7. Orlando Magic 27-34
8. Brooklyn Nets 26-33
9. Washington Wizards 22-37
10. Charlotte Hornets 21-39
11. Chicago Bulls 21-40
12. Detroit Pistons 20-42
13. New York Knicks 19-42
14. Atlanta Hawks 19-44
15. Cleveland Cavaliers 17-44
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles Lakers 46-13
2. Denver Nuggets 41-19
3. Los Angeles Clippers 41-19
4. Houston Rockets 39-21
5. Utah Jazz 38-22
6. Oklahoma City Thunder 37-23
7. Dallas Mavericks 37-25
8. Memphis Grizzlies 30-31
9. Portland Trail Blazers 27-35
10. New Orleans Pelicans 26-34
11. Sacramento Kings 26-34
12. San Antonio Spurs 25-34
13. Phoenix Suns 24-37
14. Minnesota Timberwolves 17-42
15. Golden State Warriors 13-48
x-clinched a playoffs spot
Photo Credit: Getty Images