Giannis and the Bucks Dominate

Milwaukee had a dominant performance Sunday against the Oklahoma City Thunder, running away with a 118-93 win. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and a season-high 19 rebounds and Khris Middleton recorded his second career triple-double.

“With a full team out there, we realize what we can do as a team,” said Middleton, who had 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his first triple-double since Jan. 20, 2018. “We have so many guys, so many weapons that can carry us, or guys that can make a play or just attract a crowd.”

Oklahoma City posted its lowest point total and shot its lowest percentage (.371) of the season. This was the first time since a Feb. 3 victory at Dallas that the Bucks had Antetokounmpo, Middleton and seven-time All-NBA guard Damian Lillard on the floor for the same game. It was the first time since a Jan. 31 loss at Portland that they had their preferred starting lineup of Antetokounmpo, Lillard, Middleton, Brook Lopez, and Malik Beasley. Middleton had missed 16 straight games with a sprained left ankle and also sat a victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday due to injury management.

Lakers Outlast the Pacers

The Lakers withheld a furious Pacers comeback en route to a 150-145 win. Anthony Davis had 36 points and 16 rebounds and LeBron James added 26 points and 10 assists. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 26 points in his biggest game since joining the Lakers, who have won three straight and five of seven.

“We allowed them to score 145, so … it was terrible defensively,” Davis told Associated Press reporters. “They hit some shots toward the end, but we can do what we want offensively, as you could see tonight. But we’ve got to defend, especially when we’ve got a team (in trouble) like that. We don’t need to give them life, but at this point in the season, a win is a win. We’ll take it, but we’ve got to learn from it as well.”

The teams met for the first time since the Lakers beat the Pacers 123-109 in Las Vegas to win the inaugural In-Season Tournament last December. Los Angeles led 116-99 entering the fourth quarter, but Indiana closed the gap to three points. Dinwiddie stepped up while the Lakers won for the first time in six games this season without guard D’Angelo Russell, who was out with a non-COVID illness. Los Angeles is in ninth place in a hotly contested Western Conference.