Shorthanded Bucks fall to Young, Hawks on overtime buzzer-beater
ATLANTA — Trae Young grabbed a deflected inbounds pass and made a last-second jumper to lift the Atlanta Hawks to a 136-135 overtime win over the short-handed Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday.
Justin Anderson had 24 points and 12 rebounds for Atlanta, and John Collins finished with 23 points and 12 boards. Alex Len also scored 23 points.
Sterling Brown scored 27 points for Milwaukee, including a go-ahead layup with 1.1 seconds remaining in overtime.
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Milwaukee’s Brook Lopez deflected Atlanta’s inbounds pass but Young grabbed the ball with his left hand and sank the short game-winner. A video review confirmed Young, who had 12 points and 16 assists, got off the shot before the buzzer.
The Bucks played without Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton due to injuries. Antetokounmpo, one of the favorites for the NBA MVP award, was held out due to right ankle sprain. Middleton has a sore groin.
Milwaukee began the day 3½ games ahead of Toronto in the race for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. The team’s magic number was two for securing home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.
Milwaukee led by as many as 23 points during a high-scoring first quarter. Atlanta recovered to lead in the third quarter and rallied again after trailing by 10 points midway through the fourth period.
Tim Frazier had 20 points and 15 assists for the Bucks.
Len’s jam cut the Bucks’ lead to 133-132 with 33 seconds remaining in overtime. Following Brown’s missed jumper, Young’s baseline floater with 6.6 seconds left gave Atlanta a 134-133 lead.
Len sank a tying 3-pointer with 19 seconds remaining in regulation. Brown missed a late jumper, sending the game to overtime at 122 apiece.
Antetokounmpo aggravated the ankle injury while scoring 34 points in the Bucks’ 128-118 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday night. He left midway through the fourth quarter.
Coach Mike Budenholzer said “there’s a good chance” Antetokounmpo could return on the team’s road trip, which continues with games at Brooklyn and Philadelphia.
The Hawks were without center Dewayne Dedmon, who will miss the remainder of the season with a left ankle injury.
TIP-INS
Bucks: Frazier’s 15 assists were a high mark for any Milwaukee player this season. … Antetokounmpo has missed two games since spraining his ankle on March 17 against Philadelphia. … Forwards D.J. Wilson and Bonzie Colson each made their first career starts.
Hawks: Vince Carter moved into fifth place in NBA history with 1,477 games played, passing Karl Malone. … With 42 points in the second quarter, the Hawks set an Atlanta record with 14 quarters with at least 40 points, passing their 13 in the 1968-69 season.
UP NEXT
Bucks: Try to complete a three-game sweep of their season series with Brooklyn when they visit the Nets on Monday.
Hawks: Visit San Antonio on Tuesday night.
