Antetokounmpo, Bucks win four straight; Drummond powers Cavs past Knicks

MANILA, Philippines — Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks tallied their fourth straight win after outlasting the Dallas Mavericks, 112-109 as the COVID-hit NBA season continued on Friday (Saturday, Manila time).

Antetokounmpo led the way with 31 points and nine boards to help the Bucks overcome the Mavs.

Luka Doncic botched a game-tying triple in the last possession of regulation to give the Bucks the win despite a 1-of-10 showing from the free throw line by Antetokounmpo.

Doncic finished with a near triple-double of 28 points, 13 assists and nine rebounds in the losing effort.

Meanwhile, Andre Drummond had a monster game for the Cleveland Cavaliers to propel them to the win over the New York Knicks, 106-103.

Drummond finished with an unbelievable stat line of 33 points, 23 rebounds, two steals and two blocks to help the Cavs improve to a 6-7 slate.

Knicks rookie Immanuel Quickley tallied a career-high 23 points in the loss.

In the other games, the Boston Celtics extended their win streak to five after a lopsided win over the Orlando Magic, 124-97.

Jaylen Brown tallied 21 points and eight dimes as Boston improved to 8-3.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, for his part, posted a career-high 33 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a comeback win over the Chicago Bulls in overtime, 127-125.

The Utah Jazz, meanwhile, took their fourth win in a row after beating the Atlanta Hawks, 116-92.

Donovan Mitchell spearhead Utah with 26 points, while Filipino-American guard Jordan Clarkson had another productive outing from the bench with 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

The Los Angeles Lakers tallied a win to improve to a league-best 11-3 record after beating the New Orleans Pelicans, 112-95.

LeBron James paced the Lakers offense with a near triple-double of 21 points, eight rebounds, and 11 assists.

For their part, the Los Angeles Clippers also took a win after drubbing the Sacramento Kings, 138-100.

Kawhi Leonard helped the Clippers improve to 9-4 with his 27 points and six assists while Paul George tallied 26 points.

Three other games scheduled today were postponed by the NBA due to health and safety protocols amid the COVID-19 pandemic.