Bucks beat Pelicans, Antetokounmpo leads balanced attack

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MarJon Beauchamp #3 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives to the basket during the second half of a game against the New Orleans Pelicans at Fiserv Forum on January 27, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE - Giannis Antetokounmpo had 30 points and 12 rebounds as one of four Milwaukee Bucks with at least 20 points in a 141-117 blowout of the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night.

Damian Lillard added 26 points, nine assists and six rebounds. Brook Lopez scored 24 points with 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range, and Bobby Portis had 20 points.

The Bucks shot 56% as they improved to 2-1 in their third and final game with Joe Prunty as interim head coach following the Tuesday firing of Adrian Griffin. Doc Rivers held his introductory news conference as Griffin’s permanent replacement earlier Saturday.

Rivers will make his coaching debut with the Bucks on Monday when the team opens a five-game trip against the reigning champion Denver Nuggets. Rivers will take over a team that has won seven of its last nine games.

Brandon Ingram scored 26 points and Zion Williamson had 23 for the Pelicans. Jonas Valanciunas added 13 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

Both teams were trying to bounce back after losing at home a night earlier. The Bucks had fallen 112-100 to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, while the Pelicans got trounced 107-83 by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Bucks improved to 6-1 when they’ve played on zero days’ rest, while the Pelicans had a disappointing start to a four-game trip.

Because Milwaukee was playing for a second straight night, Khris Middleton sat out Saturday’s game as the Bucks continue to manage the workload on his surgically repaired right knee. Middleton had played 36 minutes on Friday.

Williamson returned for the Pelicans after missing Friday’s game with a bone bruise in his left foot.

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After Jae Crowder’s 3-pointer broke a 17-all tie with 5:07 left in the first quarter, the Bucks stayed ahead the rest of the way.

The game started out as a shootout, with the Bucks going 13 of 25 and the Pelicans 7 of 13 from 3-point range over the first 20 ½ minutes. Both teams shot over 54% overall during a first half that ended with the Bucks ahead 75-63.

The Bucks broke the game open in the second half and eventually led by as many as 34.