Watch: Damian Lillard comes up big in fourth as Bucks down Clippers sans Giannis Antetokounmpo
With Giannis Antetokounmpo out of the lineup, Monday night was Damian Lillard's time to put the Bucks on his back.
He succeeded, scoring a game-high 41 points, including 10 in the fourth, as the Bucks erased a 15-point deficit to the Clippers in a 113-106 win. It's the third 40-point game of the season for Lillard and first since Jan. 20.
After a couple of off-shooting nights when he connected on only 28.1 percent of his attempts against the Hornets and Bulls, Lillard picked the perfect time to rediscover his touch.
Los Angeles (39-21, fourth in Western Conference) led by eight entering the fourth quarter, but Lillard pulled Milwaukee (41-21, second in Eastern Conference) within three when he made a 26-footer then gave it the lead on a shot from the paint off an assist from Bobby Portis, who also had a monster game.
Portis scored 14 points during the final 12 minutes and finished with 28 points on 12-of-18 shooting with 16 rebounds.
Two-time MVP Antetokounmpo (Achilles tendinitis) was declared out by head coach Doc Rivers earlier on Monday. Over his last five games, he averaged 31.4 points per game while shooting 66.3% from the field as the Bucks went 5-0.
The victory over the Clippers is Milwaukee's sixth consecutive, its second-longest win-streak this season. The Bucks previously won seven in a row from Dec. 11-23 under former head coach Adrian Griffin.
They're playing their best with Rivers in charge, with the strides on defense particularly a promising sign for the team's playoff hopes.
During the team's current win streak, Milwaukee is allowing 98.7 points per game. It's held six of its last 10 opponents under 100 points.
The season hasn't been all smooth sailing for the Bucks, but they appear to be hitting their stride. After scoring a massive shorthanded win against one of the Western Conference's top teams, Milwaukee is close to being the team we thought it would be.
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