Giannis Antetokoumpo was at his MVP best in Charlotte, delivering a powerhouse performance to lead the Milwaukee Bucks past the Hornets 93-85 for their sixth-straight win.
The Greek Freak poured in 41 points, 20 rebounds and 6 assists, becoming the first Bucks player with a 40-20-5 game since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in March 1974, per Elias Sports.
He did it all in under 35 minutes, the fewest minutes played in a 40-20-5 game in NBA history.
Giannis Antetokounmpo 41 points, 20 rebounds, 6 assists in just 35 minutes.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) March 1, 2020
The fewest minutes played in a 40-20-5 game in NBA history.
h/t @EliasSports pic.twitter.com/ytP7QBur4a
The Bucks have now won 20 of their past 22 games and improve to a league-best 52-8 on the season.
Antetokounmpo showed off his full repertoire, charging his way to the rim, playing out of the pick-and-roll, even knocking down fadeaway jumpers.
With six minutes remaining in the game and the Bucks leading by one, he pulled off the play of the day, spinning into the lane before jamming it home with authority, picking up the and-1.
OH. MY. GIANNIS.#FearTheDeer pic.twitter.com/lDtDD4TwXD
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) March 1, 2020
In a hard-fought battle, the Hornets hung in the contest until Antetokounmp shut it down in the closing minutes.
With 2:39 remaining, he hit Miles Bridges with a turnaround fadeaway jumper before grabbing an offensive rebound on the next possession. He was fouled and split the free throws to push the lead out to seven. With 1:09 to go, he scored on a driving layup to make it 93-82.
He was responsible for the Bucks' final seven points, icing the game in MVP style.
"It’s a shot I feel comfortable taking," Antetokounmpo said post-game of his fadeaway over Bridges. "I have been working on it since year three. Some nights I feel good and have the extra pep in my step. As long as I get it high enough and it goes over the rim it’s a good shot."
While the Bucks are flying high with six-straight wins, putting them 9.5 games clear at the top of the Eastern Conference, their run of scoring at least 100 points came to an end.
The Bucks had scored 100+ points in every game dating back to Feb. 23, 2019, a stretch of 83 games, which was good for third-most in NBA history.
The Bucks' streak of 100+ point regular season games ends at 83 — good for the third longest in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/36zxcuBDke
— StatMuse (@statmuse) March 1, 2020
Brook Lopez added 16 points and George Hill had 11 off the bench as the only two other Bucks players to crack double figure scoring.
Devonte' Graham led the Hornets with 17 points, while Terry Rozier chipped in 13, P.J. Washington 12 and Cody Martin 11. Willy Hernangomez recorded a 10-point, 13-rebound double-double off the bench.
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