Giannis Antecump too much for Knicks to handle in 119-108 loss to Bucks – Reading Eagle

MILWAUKEE — If you got up to warm up a Hot Pocket in the microwave, you might have missed it.

The Bucks’ 119-108 beatdown against the Knicks was forged with about 2 1/2 minutes of game clock left in the third quarter.

The Bucks had dropped 18 straight during that stretch Friday night. And who became the catalyst? A Greek freak, of course.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 8 of his 30 points during that streak in the third quarter, punishing the Knicks with his size and brute strength. Tom Thibodeau’s team fell behind by 24 and never recovered.

“The game is over. Sorry,” Derrick Rose said of the pointless fourth-quarter streak. “We urgently need to do a lot better early in the game. We hit the ball poorly. We have not been in contact.”

Antetokounmpo, the two-time MVP, was one pass shy of a triple-double with 14 rebounds in minutes that was actually down from his back-to-back 40-point double-doubles before the game. There were moments Friday night, particularly in the fourth quarter, when he seemed to be toying with whoever dared stand between him and the basket.

The Knicks allowed 70 points in the second and third quarters, and this time their offense couldn’t keep up.

“We started very slowly. A lot is on me. I have to do a better job of just going out there and attacking, being who I am,” Brunson said. “I take full credit for that. I have to perform with intensity and tenacity as usual. We just played from behind, catching up the whole game.”

The big three of Arjay Barrett, Julius Randle and Jalen Brunson combined for 37 points on 13-of-37 shooting. Randle’s 14 points in 31 minutes were a season-low, while Barrett made just one 3-pointer in seven attempts.

Barrett’s poor shooting is probably the most concerning trend of the early season. He’s missed 24 of 28 3-point attempts this season, and that issue has been attributed to having to expend more energy to consistently defend the opponent’s best perimeter scorer.

Thibodeau, however, dismissed the idea that Barrett has taken on more of a defensive load than in previous seasons.

“No,” Thibodeau said. “That’s funny.”

“We’ve been down that road with him before,” the coach added of Barrett’s shooting. “He usually starts off slow. He will get there. Again, the bigger he is, he’ll come back at night shooting threes. If he shoots a lot of threes, he usually makes a lot of threes.”

The Knicks are on a three-game winning streak, but the Pistons, Magic, and Hornets are considered low-level opponents. The Bucks are title contenders, prompting a reporter to ask Julius Randle about the outlets, claiming Friday was the Knicks’ first real test.

“Luckily, I’m not a vent,” Randle replied.

If the exits were right, the Knicks failed their big test.

Two nights earlier, Knicks center Mitchell Robinson said he was motivated to face Antetokounmpo because it was an opportunity to “make his mark.” Robinson was named the two-time MVP, alternating with Randle, but fouled too often and was limited to 20 minutes.

Antetokounmpo dunked on Robinson in transition in the first half, but the Knicks center got revenge with a fourth-quarter layup.

The Bucks (4-0) were without an injured Khris Middleton, arguably their second-best player, and struggled to shoot from beyond the arc Friday night (13-for-45).

But Antetokounmpo denied all this.

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