National Basketball Association
Milwaukee 94, Chicago 90
When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, January 21, 2022
Where: Fiserv Forum, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Officials: #53 John Butler, #58 Josh Tiven, #64 Justin Van Duyne
Attendance: 18013

Giannis Antetokounmpo, Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis all notched double-doubles as the host Milwaukee Bucks beat the Chicago Bulls 94-90 on Friday night to win their second straight game.

Antetokounmpo paced the Bucks with 30 points on 11-of-23 shooting and added 12 rebounds against the Bulls, who entered the night as the top-seeded team in the Eastern Conference. Middleton finished with 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, and Portis had 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Milwaukee led by seven with just 2:32 left to go, but the Bulls pulled within two with just over a minute remaining. DeMar DeRozan missed what would have been a go-ahead 3-pointer with 23 seconds left, and Middleton sunk a pair of free throws to secure the win and give the Bucks back-to-back wins for the first time since Dec. 30 and Jan. 1.

DeRozan reached the 30-point mark for the second straight game, finishing with 35 on 9-of-18 shooting along with six rebounds. Nikola Vucevic collected 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Matt Thomas provided a spark off the bench with 11 points.

The Bulls had their worst performance of the season from 3-point range, as they made just 7 of 38 (18.4 percent).

Thanks to 16 first-half points from Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee went into the break with a 45-44 lead. DeRozan led all scorers with 18 points to keep Chicago close, and Vucevic added nine to go along with six rebounds.

Neither team shot the ball efficiently from deep before halftime, but the Bulls especially struggled, going just 2-for-17. The Bucks shot 26.3 percent from beyond the arc, but dominated the battle in the paint, outscoring Chicago 20-10.

Grayson Allen was ejected in the third quarter after a foul on Alex Caruso was deemed a flagrant 2. He finished with five points and three rebounds on 2-of-5 shooting.

Offense came at a premium through the first 12 minutes, as both teams shot under 40 percent from the field and 20 percent from 3-point range. Antetokounmpo was still able to find his groove, scoring 10 of the Milwaukee's 24 points as the Bucks led 24-20.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Chicago   Milwaukee
DeMar DeRozan 35 Scoring Giannis Antetokounmpo 30
Ayo Dosunmu 6 Assists Khris Middleton 6
Nikola Vucevic 11 Rebounds Bobby Portis 13
DeMar DeRozan 17 Free Throws Made Giannis Antetokounmpo 8
Alex Caruso 1 Steals Grayson Allen 1
Nikola Vucevic 2 Blocks Giannis Antetokounmpo 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Chicago 90 36.5 7-38 21-24 21 49 4 4 10
Milwaukee 94 38.6 6-31 20-28 20 53 3 3 8
Upcoming Games
  • Milwaukee will play their next game at home against Sacramento. The Bucks have a W/L % of .607 after a win and .600 after a loss.
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against Orlando. The Bulls have a W/L % of .655 after a win and .600 after a loss.