Bucks, Hawks do battle in race for play-in spot

With their superstar back in the fold, the Milwaukee Bucks strive to right the ship as they host the Atlanta Hawks in a critical game for both teams Wednesday night.

Giannis Antetokounmpo returned for Milwaukee on Monday after missing 15 games due to a calf injury. Despite that, the Bucks were handled 108-81 by a Boston team without Jaylen Brown.

Playing on a minutes restriction, Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 19 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes. Ousmane Dieng added 13, while Bobby Portis scored 12.

"It felt good, but a little bit rusty. Something new in my career being out for such a long time, multiple times," Antetokounmpo said. "Definitely disrupted my rhythm, but I'm just happy I'm on the court, doesn't matter if I play 18, 20, 22, whatever."

Milwaukee has now lost three straight games by a combined 79 points after previously winning eight of 10.

"I don't care about the points (that they lost by), I just care about how we're playing. We were playing great, and we've lost our way, and I think it's on both ends," Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. "Offensively, we had a great rhythm."

Antetokounmpo leads Milwaukee with 27.7 points and 10.1 boards per game, and he's chipping in 5.5 assists per contest. However, he has missed the most games in a season in his career, playing just 31 to this point.

Atlanta comes in as one of the two teams directly in front of Milwaukee for the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference standings. The Hawks have done well to keep that standing as of late, having won four in a row and five of their last six.

On Sunday, the Hawks blew past the Portland Trail Blazers in Atlanta 135-101. Onyeka Okongwu led the way with 25 points on 7-of-12 shooting from deep, while the newly acquired Jonathan Kuminga added 20.

"It's hard to focus collectively for 48 minutes. There's a selflessness that's required to defend no matter what's going on; that's what I saw (Sunday)," Hawks coach Quin Snyder said.

First-time All-Star Jalen Johnson leads Atlanta with 22.7 points, 10.6 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game this season. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has proven to be a big offseason addition, averaging 19.8 points per game.

Part of the reason for Atlanta's success is the team's ability to share the basketball. The Hawks rank first in the NBA in assists per game at 30.4.

On the injury front, the reports are clear on both sides outside of Taurean Prince (neck surgery), who has missed most of the season for Milwaukee.

These teams have faced off just once this season, a tight contest on MLK Day in Atlanta that the Bucks took 112-110.

Antetokounmpo led the way with 21 and 17 rebounds, along with six assists. Alexander-Walker paced Atlanta with 32, while Johnson, a Wisconsin native, scored 28 and grabbed 16 rebounds.

There will be one more matchup between the teams in the very near future on March 14, another battle that may determine who makes the Eastern Conference play-in bracket.

--Field Level Media