Antetokounmpo scores 37 points, Bucks beat Jazz 117-100

MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 37 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Utah Jazz 117-100 on Saturday night for their third consecutive victory.

The Bucks built a 22-point lead early in the fourth quarter and held on after the Jazz pulled within single digits.

Antetokounmpo scored 24 points in the second half. Khris Middleton and Eric Bledsoe each added 20 points.

Milwaukee led by as many as 16 points in the second quarter before Utah went on a 19-5 run to pull to 44-42 on a pair of free throws by Ricky Rubio with 1:50 until halftime.

The Bucks scored the final seven points of the quarter to take a 51-42 advantage into the break.

Milwaukee opened the half on a 10-3 run and took a 61-45 lead on a basket by Antetokounmpo.

Milwaukee built a 22-point fourth-quarter advantage, but Utah pulled to 95-86 on a 3-pointer by Donovan

Mitchell with 4:05 to play. Bledsoe answered with a triple on the other end, and the Bucks closed out the game on a 22-14 run.

Rudy Gobert led the Jazz with 20 points and nine rebounds. Alec Burks added 20 points.

TIP-INS

Jazz: Guard Rodney Hood missed his seventh straight game with left ankle soreness. ... Guard Raul Neto left the game in the first quarter with concussion-like symptoms and did not return.

Bucks: Guard Tony Snell sat out for the second consecutive night with left patella tendinitis. ... Listed as questionable prior to the game, guard Matthew Dellavedova remained out with left knee tendinitis. ... Guard Gary Payton II made his second straight start in place of Snell and played a season-high 23 minutes.

BIG THREE

The trio of Antetokounmpo, Middleton and Bledsoe combined to score 227 points during Milwaukee's three-game winning streak. The Bucks are 11-4 since acquiring Bledsoe from Phoenix on Nov. 7.

NOT THE SAME

After hitting a franchise-record 18 shots from beyond the arc in a 121-108 win over the Bucks on Nov. 26, the Jazz were 8 of 23 on 3-pointers Saturday.

UP NEXT

Jazz: Utah continues its six-game trip at Chicago on Wednesday night.

Bucks: At New Orleans on Wednesday night.