MILWAUKEE — Giannis Antetokounmpo came back from a two-game absence and scored 27 points on his 27th birthday to help the Milwaukee Bucks defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-104 on Monday night.
The two-time MVP also had 12 rebounds in his return from a sore right calf as the Bucks won for the 10th time in 11 games. Milwaukee split the two games it played without Antetokounmpo, losing 97-93 at Toronto and rolling to a 124-102 home victory over Miami.
Milwaukee broke a 29-all tie with seven straight points early in the second quarter and stayed ahead the rest of the way, though Cleveland made the Bucks work for it.
After trailing by as many as 13, the Cavaliers got the margin down to two in the fourth quarter. Cedi Osman missed a 3-point attempt with 6:14 left that would have given Cleveland its first lead since late in the first quarter.
Jrue Holiday then hit a 3-pointer on the other end to extend the Bucks’ lead to 101-96 with 6:04 remaining.
Milwaukee’s lead didn’t drop below five the rest of the way.
Holiday had 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Khris Middleton provided 21 points and eight assists. Pat Connaughton scored 12, and Bobby Portis had 10 points and 16 rebounds.
The Bucks are undefeated this season when Antetokounmpo, Middleton and Holiday are all in the lineup.
Jarrett Allen led the Cavaliers with 25 points and nine rebounds while shooting 10 of 12. Lauri Markkanen scored 20, Kevin Love 15, Evan Mobley 12 and Darius Garland 10.
Milwaukee has beaten the Cavaliers eight straight times. The Bucks are 43-4 against Central Division opponents since Mike Budenholzer took over as coach in 2018.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
