Giannis Antetokounmpo achieves a career-high with 64 points, yet a post-game scuffle dampens the Milwaukee Bucks’ triumph against the Indiana Pacers.
Following his career-high and franchise-record 64-point performance in Milwaukee’s 140-126 win over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, Giannis Antetokounmpo engaged in a heated post-game altercation. The dispute arose when the Pacers took the game ball from Antetokounmpo’s historic night, prompting him to leave the court and head towards the visitors’ locker room in pursuit of the ball. Upon returning to the court, the ‘Greek Freak’ had a fiery exchange with Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton.
Following the game, Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle explained to reporters that there was a “misunderstanding” regarding the game ball. He clarified that the ball was taken to give to rookie Oscar Tshiebwe, who had scored his first official NBA point in the game.
“We always get the game ball. We were not thinking about Giannis’ franchise record,” Carlisle stated post-game. “So we grabbed the ball, and a few minutes later, several of their players ended up in our hallway, and there was a big fracas or melee, whatever you want to call it.
“I don’t think any punches were landed, but my general manager got elbowed in the ribs by one of their players, so he certainly has a bruised rib, and who knows if it’s anything more than that.”
“Unfortunate situation. We don’t need the official game ball, there’s two game balls there, we could have taken the other one, but it didn’t need to escalate to that.”
When asked whether he managed to get the game ball, Antetokounmpo said he had “no idea.”
“I really don’t know, I have a ball, but I don’t know if it’s the game ball,” he told reporters. “It doesn’t feel like the game ball to me, it feels like a brand new ball. I can tell. I played 35 minutes today, I know how the game ball felt.
“The ball that I have – which I’ll take and give to my mom for sure – I don’t know if it’s actually the game ball, but it’s OK, life continues.
“It’s just unfortunate, I’ve never seen this before.”
The Bucks secured their second win in three days against the Pacers, concluding a triple-header between the two teams that began with Indiana’s victory in the In-Season Tournament semifinals last Thursday.
On his career-best night, Antetokounmpo showcased an impressive all-around performance, contributing 14 rebounds, three assists, four steals, and a block alongside his 64 points.
Damian Lillard contributed 21 points, six assists, and four rebounds, while Khris Middleton added 14 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.
With a current record of 17-7, the Bucks hold the second position in the Eastern Conference, while the Pacers, now at 13-9, are positioned fifth.
