Bradley Beal

Bucks fail to close, again, in loss to Wizards

Published Dec. 14, 2016 8:33 a.m. ET

foxsports

WASHINGTON -- Kelly Oubre Jr. is rewarding Wizards coach Scott Brook's decision to use him late in games.

Oubre scored a career-high 19 points to go with nine rebounds and three steals in Washington's 110-105 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.

For the second game in a row, Oubre played with the starters late. Trailing 100-95, the smaller unit reeled off an 11-0 run.

"When he rebounds and defends the scoring is going to come and I thought he was outstanding throughout the game," Brooks said. "He is on a nice run right now."

John Wall had 24 points and 11 assists, and Bradley Beal added 20 points as the Wizards won for the third time in four games.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 28 points and 13 rebounds, but committed seven of Milwaukee's 20 turnovers.

Antetokounmpo's two free throws gave the Bucks a 100-95 lead with 4:28 left, but the Wizards rallied while the Bucks went cold.

Wall's driving layup gave the Wizards a 101-100 lead with 3:03 left. Oubre then anticipated a pass by Tony Snell, got the steal and his dunk at the other end made it 103-100.

Oubre is averaging 9.4 points and 5.8 rebounds over his last seven games.

"Just my focus. Focusing more on the game plan, focusing more on what I need to do, focusing more on what I can do and can't do out there on the court," Oubre said of his recent success.

Beal's driving layup pushed the lead to 105-100 and Wall, who scored nine of his points in the fourth quarter, soon added a free throw.

Mirza Teletovic's 3-pointer with 5.9 seconds left pulled the Bucks to 108-105, but Beal hit two free throws to seal the win. Teletovic finished with 25 points on 8-for-12 shooting.

The Bucks have lost three of four.

"We had 20 turnovers tonight that led to a lot of points. Again, we turned the ball over, we shot a lot of threes there in that five-minute (fourth-quarter) span," Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd said. "Our strength is the paint. We have to get back to the paint and work from the inside out."

Trailing by eight early in the third quarter, the Wizards went on a 16-3 run and led 70-65 before the Bucks answered to make it 77-77 after three.

NOT A FAN OF THE FORCE

It was Star Wars Night at Verizon Center and Brooks was asked before the game which of the movies is his favorite? "I can honestly say I have not watched one (of them)," he said. "Never. I mean I saw like five minutes walking through the living room where my kids were watching it. There's other things I have to worry about."

GROWING PAINS

Kidd's team blew a 20-point lead before losing to the Hawks on Friday night, then followed it up by faltering down the stretch against the Wizards. "We didn't earn it tonight, we didn't earn it last night," Kidd said. "For us to close games we have to have that killer mentality and the last two nights we haven't."

TIP-INS

Bucks: Milwaukee shot 14 for 23 (60.9 percent) in the first quarter, including 4 for 7 from 3-point range. . . . The Bucks have hit at least 10 3s in each of the last three games. . . . After scoring 27 points in each of his last two games, Jabari Parker had eight points.

Wizards: It was Wall's 12th double-double of the season. . . . Marcin Gortat finished with nine points and 14 rebounds. . . . The Wizards have won four of their last five versus the Bucks. . . . The Wizards have won back-to-back games for just the second time this season.

UP NEXT

Bucks: At Toronto on Monday.

Wizards: At Miami on Monday.