Antetokounmpo scores 54 points, Bucks beat Clippers 106 -105

Giannis Antetokounmpo celebrated his most well-known 50-point outburst by placing an order for 50 chicken nuggets at a Chick-fil-A drive-through. For the third time in the last month, he has already thought of a way to mark the occasion. The Milwaukee Bucks overcame a 21-point deficit to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers 106-105 on Thursday night, earning their sixth straight victory. Antetokounmpo scored 20 of his 54 points in the fourth quarter. Antetokounmpo, who also grabbed 18 rebounds, added, "I suppose I'm going to Culver's tomorrow." "I'll go have 50 cheeseburgers and eat as many as I can," the speaker said. My kid will eat the leftovers, and I'll feed my dog the remainder. In three of his previous 11 games, the Greek sensation had at least 50 points. On January 3 in a 123-113 victory against Washington, he posted a career-high 55 points. On Sunday, in a 135-110 victory over New Orleans, he scored 50 points in just 30 minutes. In his career, Antetokounmpo has participated in 50 regular-season games. That doesn't include his 50-point performance in Game 6 of the 2021 NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns, which earned the Bucks their first championship since 1971 and prompted his visit to Chick-fil-A. The only players in Bucks history to have at least three games with 50 points in a season are he and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Being in the same position as Kareem is a huge praise, Antetokounmpo added.When I was drafted, "Man, I never believed I was going to hit 50 points in the NBA." It is an absolutely bizarre adventure.

Antetokounmpo has averaged 40.2 points and 14.5 rebounds over his previous six games. With 1:47 left in the game, his two free throws gave Milwaukee its first lead since the second quarter, 106-105, as the Bucks scored the game's last seven points. When Antetokounmpo missed two free throws in a 105-104 game with 2:13 remaining, Milwaukee lost a chance to take the lead. On the Bucks' ensuing possession, he drove to the hoop once more, drawing Ivica Zubac's sixth foul, and making his free throws this time. He is persistent, according to Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer. He'll place himself in a position to support our victory, I can tell. He's going to do whatever it takes for us to win. He is unafraid and persistent."That's what you witnessed coming down the stretch," the person said. Several Milwaukee errors occurred in the last seconds, but the Clippers were unable to take advantage of them. While being defended by Wesley Matthews with assistance from Pat Connaughton, Kawhi Leonard missed an 18-footer with one second left in the game. Since my mother instructed me to protect the greatest player when I was four years old, Matthews remarked, "I've been doing that." That is simply who I am. I can't help but be in awe of those men. I believe those men appreciate me just as much as they do them. The greatest way to appreciate them is to make an effort to stop them. "Going after me is the finest way they can show me respect."

The Clippers had many opportunities to take the lead.With 27.1 seconds left in a one-point game, Paul George stole the ball from Jrue Holiday, and the Clippers took a timeout, but Leonard missed a jump shot. With 15.1 seconds left, Antetokounmpo grabbed the rebound but tossed the ball out of bounds, giving Los Angeles the ball.Leonard received the ball from the Clippers once more, but this time he missed.

Tyronn Lue, coach of the Clippers, stated, "We planned to run it to Connaughton, but they adjusted the matchup. They included Matthews in it, He did a nice job of getting into Kawhi, making him uneasy, and forcing him to reposition himself so he couldn't immediately go downward. Norman Powell led the Clippers with 26 points. Despite having 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists, Leonard only made 7 of 26 shots. George and Marcus Morris both scored 16 points. Zubac got 13 rebounds in addition to 12 points. For the Bucks, Khris Middleton scored 16 points, while Justin Holiday added 12. Holiday didn't score until much later after missing his first eight shots.

TIP-INS

Clippers: Morris returned after missing four games with a bruised rib. George earned his eighth career All-Star selection earlier in the day.

Bucks: Holiday was named an All-Star reserve, marking his first All-Star selection since 2013 with the Philadelphia 76ers. He joins Antetokounmpo on the All-Star team. This is the fourth time in the last five seasons that the Bucks have had multiple All-Stars.