Bucks edge Nets; Portis, Lopez shine with Antetokounmpo out

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Bobby Portis shoots over Seth Curry of the Brooklyn Nets on March 9. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE - Brook Lopez had 24 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high nine blocks and the Milwaukee Bucks outlasted the short-handed Brooklyn Nets 118-113 on Thursday night.

The nine blocks are most by an NBA player this season. Bobby Portis added a season-high 28 points to go along with 13 rebounds to help the NBA-leading Bucks win for the 19th time in 20 games.

The Bucks were missing two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo for a second straight game. Antetokounmpo didn't play due to a sore right hand after sitting out a 134-123 victory at Orlando on Tuesday with a non-COVID illness.

Brooklyn's injury situation was worse.

The Nets didn't have Nic Claxton (right thumb sprain/left Achilles tendinopathy), Spencer Dinwiddie (rest), Cam Johnson (right knee soreness), Royce O'Neale (left knee soreness) and Ben Simmons (left back/knee soreness).

Mikal Bridges and Dorian Finney-Smith were the only Nets available who started in their 118-96 victory at Houston two nights earlier. Neither of them played more than 12 minutes as Nets coach Jacque Vaughn opted to limit their workloads.

The Nets still made this one competitive, clawing back after the Bucks went 12 of 21 from 3-point range in the first 15 minutes to take a 46-24 lead.

Brooklyn's Patty Mills scored 23 points and Cam Thomas had 21. The Nets also got big contributions from Dru Smith and David Duke Jr., who are both on two-way contracts that shuttle them between Brooklyn and the NBA G League.

Smith had 17 points in his 10th career NBA game. His previous scoring high was five. Duke had a career-high 13 points.

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Brooklyn trailed 99-97 and appeared to have a chance to tie it after officials ruled Lopez fouled Day’Ron Sharpe on a dunk attempt with 4:31 left.

But the Bucks challenged the call, and replays determined it was a clean block. Portis scored 15 seconds later to start an 8-2 run that extended the Bucks’ advantage to 107-99 with 2 1/2 minutes left.

Brooklyn cut it to 112-110 on Thomas’ driving layup with 46.7 seconds left, but Lopez delivered a putback of Jrue Holiday’s missed 3-point attempt with 30.6 seconds remaining.

Lopez then blocked David Duke Jr.'s driving layup attempt to set up Jevon Carter's basket with 16.1 seconds remaining. Mills made a 3-pointer with 13 seconds left before the Bucks sealed the victory with a pair of free throws from Grayson Allen, who had 19 points.

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Tip-ins

Nets: Nerlens Noel was in the starting lineup in just his second game with the Nets. He signed a 10-day contract Monday. The Nets also started Bridges, Finney-Smith, Joe Harris and Seth Curry. ... They opened the second half with Duke, Mills, Sharpe, Smith and Thomas on the floor.

Bucks: Lopez spent his first nine NBA seasons with the Nets. ... Carter shot 2 of 12 and had just five points. He had scored at least 20 points in each of his last two games. ... Wesley Matthews missed an eighth straight game with a strained right calf.

Up next

Nets: At Minnesota on Friday night.

Bucks: At Golden State on Saturday night.