Devin Booker scored 32 points and Kevin Durant added 28 points and 10 rebounds to help the Phoenix Suns notch a 114-106 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.
Bradley Beal had 25 points and a season-best 10 rebounds to go with three steals, and Jusuf Nurkic added 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns. Phoenix is 16-6 since falling below .500 with a loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Christmas night.
Giannis Antetokounmpo recorded 34 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Bucks. Malik Beasley made six 3-pointers while scoring 22 points and Pat Connaughton added 12 points for Milwaukee.
Bucks star Damian Lillard missed the contest with a sprained left ankle. Milwaukee also lost Khris Middleton to a sprained left ankle during the first quarter. Middleton had six points in eight minutes before exiting.
The Bucks dropped to 1-4 under new coach Doc Rivers. All the games have been on the road.
Phoenix shot 50.6 percent from the field and made 8 of 28 attempts from 3-point range. Durant scored half of his points in the final quarter.
The Bucks connected on 43.3 percent of their attempts, including 13 of 40 from behind the arc. Cameron Payne added 11 points and Jae Crowder had 10 for Milwaukee.
Durant drove through the lane and delivered a thunderous dunk with 8:51 remaining in the game. He was fouled by Antetokounmpo and made the ensuing free throw to give the Suns a 93-80 lead.
Antetokounmpo responded with two dunks in a 68-second span, the latter one causing Phoenix coach Frank Vogel to call for a timeout.
A short time later, Grayson Allen scored five straight points to give the Suns a 100-86 lead with 6:09 left.
Durant’s 3-point basket made it 107-92 with 3:49 remaining, and Phoenix cruised to the finish despite Booker going scoreless over the final 12 minutes.
Antetokounmpo had 14 points and eight rebounds in the first half as Milwaukee led 49-48 at the break. Booker had 16 points in the half for the Suns.
Phoenix scored 23 of the first 36 points in the third quarter and took a 71-62 lead on Booker’s three-point play with 4:40 left. The Bucks answered with a 9-2 run to creep within two.
Beal’s basket with 35.7 seconds to go gave the Suns a 79-73 advantage entering the final stanza.
–Field Level Media
