WATCH: Giannis Antetokounmpo drops a hammer and triple-double while Damian Lillard splashes from deep as they tackle the Hawks
Milwaukee Bucks superstars Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard were in their element in their 132-121 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday. In a key stretch in the third quarter of the game, the two All-Stars provided rallying points as their team made a spirited charge at the visitors.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was the first to go off, making end-to-end solid plays midway into the third quarter. Off a defensive rebound, he sprinted down to their court, fielded an assist from Lillard, and threw down a hammer.
Minutes later, it was Damian Lillard’s turn to impress, draining a deep triple from the elbow to extend their lead to 94-91 at the 1:57 mark of the third canto.
Giannis Antetokounmpo went on to finish the game with a triple-double of 32 points, on 70% shooting, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. The ‘Greek Freak’ also had two steals and one block in 36 minutes. Lillard, for his part, had 25 points, nine assists and six rebounds. He went 3-of-6 from beyond the arc.
The win was a bounce-back for the Bucks after absorbing a tough 120-113 overtime loss against the Chicago Bulls on Friday.
Milwaukee is currently at joint second place in the Eastern Conference with a 14-6 win-loss record. They will play the next NBA In-Season Tournament quarterfinal knockout game against the New York Knicks at home on Tuesday.
Giannis Antetokounmpo expects things to get tougher for the Bucks
While happy with the way his team is performing in the ongoing NBA season, Giannis Antetokounmpo warned the Milwaukee Bucks to guard against complacency and highlighted the need for them to continue having a go-getting mindset moving forward.
The two-time league MVP said that as one of the top teams in the NBA right now, opponents will go for their heads each time and that they have to be ready for it.
Antetokounmpo shared this following one of their victories in the NBA In-Season Tournament against the Washington Wizards, taking to X (formerly Twitter) to make his point. He said:
“They are going to keep coming for us. We just got to keep moving forward.”
In their game against the Wizards, the Bucks made franchise history with three players scoring 30 or more points in the game. They were Brook Lopez (39 points), Antetokounmpo (31) and Damian Lillard (31).
The Bucks finished their East Group B assignments in In-Season play with a 4-0 record, advancing to the quarterfinals.