Four Bucks exceed 20 points in win over slumping Lakers

(Reuters) - Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 24 points and added 12 rebounds and nine assists to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 126-106 win over the visiting Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.

Three other Bucks scored more than 20 points to help Milwaukee end its three-game skid. Brook Lopez scored 23, Kevin Porter Jr. had 22 off the bench and Damian Lillard tallied 22 points and 10 assists.

Luka Doncic shined for Los Angeles, which lost its third in a row. He led the way with 45 points on 14-for-27 shooting, along with 11 rebounds. Austin Reaves added 28 points.

The first half saw Milwaukee battling back and forth with Doncic. In the first quarter, Doncic made four of his first six shots, scoring 16 points, but Milwaukee led 33-29 going into the second.

The Bucks' 3-point shooting was strong in the half. They were 11-for-23 and ended the half up 71-63 despite 29 points from Doncic on 9-for-15 shooting.

Lillard and Porter each led the Bucks with 15 points and Lillard had eight assists. Antetokounmpo scored just six points by the break.

Antetokounmpo became more aggressive in the second half, leading the Bucks with 12 points in the third quarter. Milwaukee's 3-pointers continued to fall as the Bucks went into the fourth quarter up 102-82.

The Lakers shot just 32 percent in the third and got outscored 31-19. While they stayed close enough to keep Doncic in the game late despite another game ahead of them tomorrow night, Milwaukee cruised to victory in the latter half of the fourth.

In total, Milwaukee shot 17-for-40 (42.5 percent) from beyond the arc.

The Bucks ended their two-game losing streak against the Lakers, who swept the two-game set a year ago. These teams will face each other once again in L.A. in one week.