Bucks top rockets despite Fred VanVleet’s Hot Shooting Night

On By Littum

The Houston Rockets traveled to Milwaukee on Monday night. They were looking to extend their winning streak to six against arguably their best opponent this season in Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks.

Houston came out of the gate hot, taking an early 10-point lead in the first quarter after a big team effort on the defensive end against Milwaukee.

However, the Bucks caught their groove in the second quarter and rode the hot hands of center Brook Lopez and guard Gary Trent Jr., who both drained threes to give Milwaukee a 57-45 lead at the end of the first half.

The Rockets weren’t down and out yet, though.

Veteran guard Fred VanVleet took off in the third quarter, consistently hitting hard buckets around the rim and hitting timely three-pointers to keep Houston in the game. His play in the third brought the team back as it trailed by only three at the end of three quarters.

Crunch time, however, belonged to star guard Jalen Green.

He put on a show, hitting several acrobatic layups with the defense draped over him. Green’s outstanding play throughout the fourth gave the Rockets a four-point lead over the Bucks with just over three minutes left in the game.

But despite the efforts of VanVleet and Green, it was superstar guard Damian Lillard who effectively ended this game. Down just one point with less than 20 seconds left, Milwaukee put the ball in Lillard’s. He then drove down the lane in the paint and threw up a finger roll.

After hitting the backboard, Ball went and threw the hoop with just three seconds left, giving the Bucks a one-point lead.

The Rockets tried to make an inbounds play to star center Alperen Şengün, but he couldn’t handle the pass and it was the ballgame.

Milwaukee topped Houston 101-100. VanVleet’s 26 points weren’t enough to push the Rockets over the Bucks.

Houston now gets an opportunity to avenge that loss on Wednesday against the Indiana Pacers back at the Toyota Center.

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