NEW YORK, USA, Dec 4 – The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Detroit Pistons 113-109 despite losing the NBA’s two-time Most Valuable Player Giannis Antetokounmpo to injury early in the match.
Antetokounmpo, 30, fell to the floor in the third minute and had to be helped off court by his team-mates.
The Bucks trailed by 18 points in the first quarter, but fought back at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum to claim just their second win in 10 games.
Kevin Porter Jr registered 26 points for the Bucks, with Ryan Rollins adding 22 and AJ Green scoring 11 of his 19 in the fourth quarter to fuel the comeback.
“It was a hell of a win,” Bucks head coach Doc Rivers said.
“We get down early, miss wide open, great shots, but we just couldn’t get anything to fall.
“And Giannis gets hurt… to fight back, it just shows a lot of stuff about this team.”
Detroit remain top of the Eastern Conference after their fifth loss of the season, with Milwaukee sitting 10th.
The Bucks initially thought Antetokounmpo had strained his right calf, but are awaiting confirmation after the Greek power forward had an MRI scan.
Before the match, rumours had emerged via ESPN that Antetokounmpo was “mulling his future” with the franchise.
But Rivers said there had been “no conversations” about a possible trade.
Elsewhere, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard combined for 48 points to help the Los Angeles Clippers end a five-game losing streak with a 115-92 win at the Atlanta Hawks.
Jamal Murray scored a season-high 52 points as the Denver Nuggets beat the Indiana Pacers 135-120 in Indianapolis.
