Bucks nab 18th straight victory

New York, December 15

The Milwaukee Bucks continued their franchise-best start and pulled within two games of matching their all-time longest winning streak on Saturday, routing the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 125-108.

Milwaukee faced little resistance from a struggling Cleveland bunch. The Bucks jumped to an 18-point halftime lead and expanded the gap to as many as 28 points in the third quarter on the way to their 18th straight win. The Bucks’ 24-3 start is the best in the 52-year history of the organization.

To match the 20-game winning streak of the Oscar Robertson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar-led 1970-71 Bucks, this 2019-20 squad will have to beat two of the hottest teams in the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers, next week.

Heat 122, Mavericks 118

Jimmy Butler scored 27 points as Miami defeated host Dallas in a game that saw Luka Doncic sprain his right ankle early in the first quarter.

Tyler Herro finished with 19 points and Bam Adebayo collected a triple-double with 18 points, 11 boards and 10 assists for the Heat, who rebounded after dropping a 113-110 decision to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday. Tim Hardaway Jr. made six 3-pointers to highlight his 28-point performance and Kristaps Porzingis had 22 points and 14 rebounds for the Mavericks, who have lost two of three after winning 10 of their previous 11. X-rays were negative for Doncic, who did not return to the game after stepping on the foot of Miami guard Kendrick Nunn while driving to the basket.

Bulls 109, Clippers 106

Zach LaVine made a go-ahead layup with 2.0 seconds remaining and sank a free throw to complete a three-point play, and Chicago emerged with a win over visiting Los Angeles.

LaVine finished with 31 points on 11-for-21 shooting, including 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. Thaddeus Young finished with 17 points, Denzel Valentine had 16, and Lauri Markkanen notched 13 points and 17 rebounds for the Bulls.

Raptors 110, Nets 102

Pascal Siakam finished with 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and host Toronto won for the 16th time in its last 17 meetings with Brooklyn Nets.

Siakam added three steals and three blocks while hitting 3 of 5 3-point attempts. Norman Powell added 25 points for the Raptors before fouling out with 1:05 left in the game. Kyle Lowry scored 17 points, Marc Gasol had 17 points and 15 rebounds and Serge Ibaka had 12 points. — Reuters