Bucks ride fast start to rout of Suns
PHOENIX -- Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 18 of his 30 points in the first quarter and the Milwaukee Bucks weathered a 27-point second quarter by Phoenix guard Devin Booker and steamrolled the Suns 137-112 on Saturday.
Mirza Teletovic had 19 points and Jabari Parker added 18 for the Bucks (22-28), who ended a five game losing streak. Six Bucks finished in double figures and Milwaukee set a season high for points.
Booker finished with a game-high 31 points for the Suns (16-35), who have lost six of the last seven overall and five straight at home. Marquese Chriss added a career-high 27 points for Phoenix, which fell behind 25 points in the second quarter and couldn't recover even with Booker's flurry.
Milwaukee limped into Phoenix with nine losses in the last 10 games, but was in total control against the Suns beginning with its best quarter of the season.
The Bucks hit 17 of 22 shots in the first quarter, scoring 26 of their 45 points from in the paint. Antetokounmpo made eight of his nine shots and ex-Sun Teletovic capped a 17-0 Milwaukee run with a 3-pointer to give the Bucks a 23-point lead at 41-18 with 1:35 left.
Milwaukee kept coming early in the second period, with Jason Terry's 3-pointer extending the lead to 58-33 with 7:34 left.
That's when Booker, who didn't score into the first 16-plus minutes of the game, and the Suns took off.
Booker hit a 3-pointer with 7:14 left to make it a 58-36 game, the first of five 3-pointers he hit in the quarter. Booker made 9 of 11 shots the rest of the way and scored 27 of the final 33 Phoenix points of the half.
His two free throws with 5.2 seconds capped a 19-8 run to cut the Milwaukee lead to 74-66 at the half.
Booker's 27-point quarter was one short of the Suns' record 28 points he had in the fourth quarter of a 113-108 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Mexico City.
But that was as close as the Phoenix got. Greg Monroe had nine points in the third quarter and Milwaukee took a 101-89 lead to the fourth before stretching it to as many as 27 in the fourth quarter.
NOTES: Suns forward Dragan Bender missed his fifth game in the last six with a right ankle injury. ... Post players Roy Hibbert and Spencer Hawes, obtained in a trade with the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday for C Miles Plumlee, joined the Bucks in Phoenix on Saturday and will make their debuts on Wednesday against the Miami Heat. "They're veterans, they understand what it takes to win," Bucks coach Jason Kidd said. "Hibbert protects the rim; he can shoot the ball on the perimeter and can put the ball in the basket in the paint. Hawes can shoot the 3 and stretch the defense. They both know how to play the game the right way." ... SG Khris Middleton, who has missed the entire season following surgery on a torn left hamstring, is also expected to be ready Wednesday. ... Suns SG Devin Booker entered Saturday with at least 20 points in 15 consecutive games. Only Tom Chambers (21), Gail Goodrich (20), Amar'e Stoudemire (18) and Charlie Scott (17) have longer streaks in franchise history.