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Bucks Win NBA Title, Their First in Half-Century

Pixabay.com

It had been been 50 years since the Milwaukee Bucks last won an NBA championship. Fittingly, their two-time NBA most valuable player scored 50 in last night’s clincher.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 50 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks as the Bucks beat the Suns, 105-98 to win the series 4-2. He shot 16 for 25 from the field and made an unbelievable 17-of-19 free throws after entering the game shooting under 56% from the line in the postseason.

The Greek Freak was named the NBA Finals MVP following his remarkable performance.

Khris Middleton delivered 17 points and Bobby Portis had 16 off the bench for Milwaukee, which hadn’t won the title since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson carried the 1971 squad.

The Bucks started strong and enjoyed a 29-16 lead heading into the second quarter. But the Suns dominated the reset of the half, outscoring Milwaukee, 31-13 to carry a five-point advantage into the locker room.

The Bucks became the fifth team to win the NBA Finals after trailing 2-0 and the first to do it by winning the next four games since Miami against Dallas in 2006.

Chris Paul scored 26 points to end his first NBA Finals appearance in his 16th season. Devin Booker added 19 points but shot just 8 for 22 and missed all seven 3-pointers after scoring 40 points in each of the last two games.

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