Damian Lillard Shines As San Antonio Spurs Fall to Milwaukee Bucks For 2nd Straight Loss
SAN ANTONIO — For just the second time of the season, the San Antonio Spurs had to deal with life without Victor Wembanyama against the Milwaukee Bucks.
After an ankle injury coach Gregg Popovich described as something that was "just there" kept the rookie sidelined for the game, the Spurs started Zach Collins in his place and kept the show rolling, but with as high-powered as the Bucks had been up to that point, they knew it was going to be a tall order.
That proved to be more than true, as San Antonio couldn't overcome its host on the road and ultimately fell 132-119 by the end of the 48 minutes of play.
Milwaukee was fueled by an offensive masterclass from Damian Lillard, who had 19 points by the end of the first quarter and finished the game with 40 on near-60 percent shooting. Giannis Antetokounmpo complemented that with a quiet triple-double of his own. The Bucks’ big man tallied 11 points, 14 rebounds and 16 assists to create production in other ways besides scoring to elevate his team over its visitors.
The Spurs, on the other hand, found production from Zach Collins — who finished the game with 22 points as the interim-starting center — Tre Jones, Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson, all of whom combined for 59 points of their own, though it just wasn’t enough.
Dec 19, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks guard Damian Lillard (0) shoots around San Antonio Spurs center Zach Collins (23) during the first quarter at Fiserv Forum.
© Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
From the jump, San Antonio fell behind.
Lillard made his presence felt almost instantly, and no matter what the Spurs did in response, he was able to respond. By the end of the first period, the Bucks’ newest star had tallied 19 points to almost single-handedly out-duel the Spurs as Milwaukee took a 44-26 lead after one.
The second period wasn’t much better.
San Antonio trailed by as many as 22 points with still 10 minutes to play before halftime, and slowly but surely, they began to make their way back into it. A balanced attack from Cedi Osman, Collins and Vassell brought the Spurs within 13 points, but ultimately it was Milwaukee who responded and re-took control of the contest to hold a double-digit lead heading to halftime.
The Spurs found some more momentum in the third quarter, bringing the lead to single digits after Keldon Johnson found the bottom of the bucket from midrange, but like the times before, Lillard and company only extended their lead, which ended up being North of 20 ahead of the final period.
By time the fourth quarter rolled around, the Spurs were just about out of the game and sat struggling to stay even close to striking distance. Johnson had his name written all over the fourth quarter scoring-wise, but it was too little, too late. Milwaukee finished out its home rout by fending off any slivers of a Spurs comeback and secured an 132-119 win to mark its fifth straight.
With the loss, the Spurs fall to 4-22 on the season and are now on a losing streak of two games that wanes in comparison to the 18-game one they just snapped against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Next up for the youngest team in the NBA is another road game, this time against a Chicago Bulls squad slowly finding its rhythm, as both squads look to earn a win.
Tipoff from United Center is set for 7 p.m. CST Thursday.
