Antetokounmpo explodes for 44 points as Bucks nip Wembanyama's Spurs

LOS ANGELES – The Milwaukee Bucks, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo's 44 points and 14 rebounds, held off the San Antonio Spurs, 125-121, on Thursday (Friday Manila time) despite another stellar performance from Victor Wembanyama on his 20th birthday.

Wembanyama, restricted to 26 minutes on the floor as he recovers from ankle trouble, scored 27 points with nine rebounds and five blocked shots.

Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 34 points, but the highlight-reel battle between Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama stole the show in San Antonio.

It was the French rookie's first meeting with the Greek superstar after Wembanyama's sprained ankle forced him to miss a December game in Milwaukee.

"He's unbelievable, unbelievable talent," Antetokounmpo said of Wembanyama, who thrilled San Antonio fans in the first half by jamming home a dunk off his own bounce off the backboard.

"He can score at will, anytime he wants. Plays the right way, plays to win. It was good playing against him," added Antetokounmpo after the Bucks snapped a two-game skid to improve to 25-10, the third best record in the league.

The entertaining contest was tied 93-93 heading into a fourth quarter that featured eight lead changes, the Spurs battling for the upset in a season that has seen them win just five games.

For Wembanyama, it was also a chance to test himself against a player he "grew up watching" in Antetokounmpo — a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player who led the Bucks to the NBA title in 2021.

"It's always extra motivation," Wembanyama said. "I want to go at everyone and be the bad guy on the court. So it was a great match-up."

Antetokounmpo drained a 3-pointer to tie it up at 118-118 with three minutes to play. He then drew a charge call on Wembanyama and less than a minute later drilled another three-pointer to put the Bucks up 121-118.

Wembanyama answered with a big block of a Damian Lillard layup and a 3-pointer that tied it with 1:09 remaining.

A dunk from Antetokounmpo put the Bucks back in front, but Wembanyama blocked another shot from a driving Antetokounmpo to keep the Spurs within reach.

A heavily guarded Wembanyama found open teammate Tre Jones for a potential game-tying 3-pointer with just over a second to play, but Jones's shot didn't fall.

"Of course the outcome isn't what we wanted, but it was the widest open shot," Wembanyama said, adding that the Spurs' overall performance was encouraging.

"Just the fact that we can compete with a championship level team like this is promising," he said.