Middleton scores 30 points, Bucks hold off Wizards 91-85
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Khris Middleton scored 30 points and hit a key 3-pointer from the corner with 40.8 seconds left, and the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a four-game losing streak with a 91-85 victory over the Washington Wizards on Saturday night.
Middleton had missed a 3 but the offensive rebound was tracked down by center Zaza Pachulia, who flipped a pass back to Middleton for a successful follow.
Paul Pierce missed a 3 on Washington’s next possession and Jared Bayless hit two foul shots with 22.2 seconds left to give the Bucks a five-point lead. Pierce also went 1 of 2 from the foul line with 17.6 seconds left.
Milwaukee nearly gave the game away after leading by as much as 60-43 with 8:50 left in the third quarter.
Washington finished the quarter with a 20-5 run to cut it to 65-63 going into the fourth quarter. Garrett Temple scored eight of his 11 points in the third.
It was neck-and-neck the rest of the way between two teams vying for playoff positioning in the middle of the Eastern Conference.
Middleton was a difference-maker after shooting 11 of 20, including 6 of 9 from 3-point range. He also grabbed nine rebounds.
Bayless added 13 points for the Bucks off the bench.
Pierce led the Wizards with 14 points, but was 4 of 15 from the field. He had eight rebounds.
TIP INS
Wizards: Coach Randy Wittman said he held out Bradley Beal as a precaution after the shooting guard played 33 minutes in Friday night’s win over Miami. Beal had played three games in six days since returning from a lower right leg injury that forced him to miss eight contests. … Washington was trying to win consecutive games for the first time since beating Brooklyn on Feb. 7 and Orlando two days later.
Bucks: Carter-Williams and Tyler Ennis, who each played college ball at Syracuse, declined comment when asked about the NCAA’s penalties against the Orange program and coach Jim Boeheim for decade-long violations. “I can’t really comment on how harsh the penalty was or wasn’t because I don’t know exactly what they accusing (Boeheim) of. I am not sure,” Carter-Williams said.
UP NEXT
Wizards: At Charlotte on Monday night.
Bucks: Host New Orleans on Monday night.
This article was written by Genaro C. Armas from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
