Spurs revert to form, beat Bucks

MILWAUKEE - Shooting guard Danny Green scored 20 points, forward Tim Duncan had 19 and the San Antonio Spurs avoided losing three straight games to Eastern Conference opponents for the first time since 2010 with a 114-103 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night at the BMO Harris Bradley Center.
Less than 24 hours after a loss to the woeful New York Knicks - one that led San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich to publicly criticize his team - the Spurs reverted to championship form, shooting 50 percent from the field (38 of 76) with eight 3-pointers and double-digit scoring from five players.
The Bucks got 19 points and nine rebounds from forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, 17 from forward Ersan Ilyasova and 15 from shooting guard Khris Middleton.
Milwaukee shot 49 percent from the field and was 7 of 14 on 3-point attempts but went to the free throw line 24 times, making 18, and the Spurs were 30 of 38 from the stripe.
The Bucks railed late in the third quarter and had a chance to make it a two-possession game, but Bayless missed from the top of the key and the Spurs answered with a 3-pointer by forward Marco Belinelli with 24 seconds left left, sending the Spurs into the fourth up 91-80.
San Antonio put the game away with 8:12 left when Belinelli connected on a 3-pointer from the left wing and was knocked to the ground by Bayless. Officials reviewed the play and called Bayless for a flagrant-1. Belinelli hit all three free throws to make it 101-88.
NOTES: Entering Wednesday’s action, the Bucks held opponents to 85 points or fewer a league-leading 16 times this season. ... Milwaukee averaged just 90.6 points over its previous 13 games, going 3-10 in that span. ... San Antonio went 9-1 in the previous 10 meetings with Milwaukee and was averaging 105.7 points on 51.8 percent shooting during that stretch.
San Antonio 114, Milwaukee 103
San Antonio    27    36    28    23    -    114
Milwaukee    28    26    26    23    -    103
SAN ANTONIO (114)
Da.Green 7-16 4-4 20, Duncan 9-16 1-2 19, K.Leonard 3-8 6-8 14, T.Parker 6-7 2-2 15, Splitter 2-2 2-5 6, Diaw 5-8 8-8 18, Belinelli 2-9 5-5 11, Mills 1-3 0-0 3, R.Williams 2-3 0-0 4, Ayres 1-1 2-4 4, Joseph 0-2 0-0 0, Bonner 0-0 0-0 0, K.Anderson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 38-76 30-38 114.
MILWAUKEE (103)
Antetokounmpo 8-16 3-3 19, Carter-Williams 3-9 5-6 11, Ilyasova 7-14 1-3 17, Middleton 5-8 4-4 15, Pachulia 4-7 2-4 10, Bayless 4-8 2-2 12, T.Ennis 2-7 0-0 4, Mi.Plumlee 2-4 0-0 4, Henson 2-3 1-2 5, C.Johnson 2-4 0-0 6, O’Bryant III 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 39-80 18-24 103.
3-Point Goals: San Antonio 8-20 (K.Leonard 2-3, Da.Green 2-4, Belinelli 2-6, T.Parker 1-1, Mills 1-3, R.Williams 0-1, Duncan 0-2), Milwaukee 7-14 (Bayless 2-2, C.Johnson 2-3, Ilyasova 2-5, Middleton 1-2, T.Ennis 0-2). Fouled out: None. Rebounds: San Antonio 48 (Da.Green 8), Milwaukee 45 (Mi.Plumlee 11). Assists: San Antonio 27 (Duncan 7), Milwaukee 28 (Carter-Williams 6). Total Fouls: San Antonio 19 (K.Leonard, Da.Green 4), Milwaukee 26 (Antetokounmpo, Ilyasova 5). A-3,624.