© Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
The Milwaukee Bucks lose to the Denver Nuggets in first game under coach Doc Rivers
The Milwaukee Bucks couldn’t sustain a hot start and dropped their first game under coach Doc Rivers, losing to the defending champions Denver Nuggets, 107-113, on Monday night.
Rivers debuted as the 18th coach of the Bucks franchise, taking over the spot vacated by Adrian Griffin, who was fired after 43 games and Milwaukee holding a 30-13 record. Milwaukee went 2-1 under interim coach Joe Prunty.
Terrible first-quarter ending
Doc’s first game with Milwaukee took off to a smooth start as the Bucks raced to a 26-13 lead with 4:25 left in the first period. The Bucks suddenly struggled, missing their next eight shots, and never scored again since building the 13-point lead, allowing the Nuggets to come back and move within 25-26 at the end of the opening quarter.
Denver tied the contest at the half, 56-56, then held the usually high-scoring Milwaukee to just 19 points in the third to take an 82-75 lead entering the final quarter.
The Nuggets built their biggest lead in the contest, 84-75 when DeAndre Jordan opened the fourth with a dunk. Milwaukee mounted its own run and retook the 90-88 lead with 8:19 left.
Denver pulls away late
The Nuggets took total control when they fired eight straight points as part of a blistering 20-9 run that allowed them to build another nine-point cushion, 108-99, with only 2:36 to go.
Giannis Antetokounmpo paced the Bucks with 29 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, a steal, and a block. Brook Lopez added 19 points, while Damian Lillard shot just 5-for-13 from the field and managed just 18 points. Khris Middleton added 14 points, but he and Lillard each had eight turnovers.
Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic were outstanding for the Nuggets, who won their fifth straight game at home to improve to 33-15 on the season. Jamal finished with 35 points, while Nikola collected 25 points, 16 rebounds, and 12 assists.
