Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo delivered a remarkable performance in a 140-126 win over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night that saw him score 64 points. This was both Antetokounmpo’s career high and a new Bucks franchise record for most points scored in a single game.
Even more impressive was that Antetokounmpo scored his points without making a single three-pointer. He was 20-of-25 on two-point tries and made 24 out of his 32 free throw attempts. He rounded up his historic performance with 14 rebounds, three assists, four steals and one block.
“He’s an unstoppable player. You can’t guard him one-on-one. You’ve got some really good guys surrounding him, but at the end of the day, it’s all him,” said Bucks’ head coach Adrian Griffin after the game. “His talent. His ability. His will. He has an incredible will to win, and he’ll do whatever it takes to win.”
Antetokounmpo’s big night was partly overshadowed by an incident that took place after the final whistle. The two-time NBA MVP wanted to have the game ball, but he discovered that the Pacers already took it. Indiana wanted to give it to rookie Oscar Tshiebwe, who scored his first NBA points that night.
Antetokounmpo was visibly upset, entering an animated discussion with the Pacers’ players and then heading to their locker room in an attempt to retrieve the ball. The 29-year-old player ended up getting the ball but is still unsure whether that was the ball he played with.
“I have no idea. I’m not going to lie,” said Antetokounmpo. “I really don’t know. I have a ball, but I don’t know if it’s the game ball. It doesn’t feel like the game ball to me. It feels like a brand-new ball. I can tell. I played, what, 35 minutes today. I know how the game ball felt. The ball that I have, which I’ll take and I’ll give it to my mom, for sure — but I don’t know if it’s actually the game ball.”
