© Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
The Milwaukee Bucks rally past the Dallas Mavericks to secure their first win under Doc Rivers
The Milwaukee Bucks snapped a two-game slide and finally won under new coach Doc Rivers following a 129-117 come-from-behind win over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night.
Aside from notching his first win as a Milwaukee coach, Doc Rivers also earned the right to coach the Eastern Conference All-Stars, as the Bucks are already assured to have the second-best record after February 4th.
The Boston Celtics lead the East, but coach Joe Mazzulla is already ineligible to coach in an All-Star Game after handling the East All-Star last year.
Massive night for Giannis, Dame
The Bucks triumphed in their third-straight road game behind Giannis Antetokounmpo, who finished with 48 points on 20-for-28 shooting from the field. He also added 10 assists, six rebounds, and five steals.
Damian Lillard was also extra efficient, going 10-for-11 from the field to finish with 30 points. Lillard went 5-for-5 from three-point range to help the Bucks rally from 25 points down for their second-biggest comeback victory this season. Milwaukee wiped out a 26-point deficit in a 108-102 win over the Portland Trail Blazers on November 26th.
Despite not having the injured Kyrie Irving, Dallas started like a house on fire and ended the first period with a 44-20 lead. The lead ballooned to 25 points, 49-24, early in the second quarter before the Bucks staged a blistering run.
Milwaukee’s huge fightback
The Mavericks were still ahead by 20, 65-45, with only 2:12 left in the second canto when the Bucks staged a 15-0 run that started and ended with a Lillard basket. Dame sparked the run with a layup and capped it with a three-pointer as Milwaukee cut the deficit to just five at the half, 60-65.
The two squads fought back and forth in the third, but the Bucks eventually took a 93-92 lead with one quarter left to play. The table was completely turned in the payoff period, where the Bucks led by as many as 15 points to seal the huge comeback win.
Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis Jr. added 13 and 12 markers, respectively, as the Bucks improved to 33-16 in the season.
Luka Doncic had 40 points, Maxi Kleber scored 21, and Josh Green added 20 for the Mavericks, who dropped to 26-23 with their second-straight loss.
