Houston Dismantles Milwaukee 132-100 Behind VanVleet, Thompson Eruption
Houston walked out of Milwaukee with a 32-point demolition, 132-100, in a game that stopped being competitive before halftime. Four Rockets finished in double figures, and the story of the night was a second-quarter blitz that turned a tight game into a rout.
The first quarter looked like a real basketball game — for a while. Tyler Herro opened the scoring with a 32-foot three-pointer, Milwaukee pushed ahead, and the lead changed hands repeatedly. Amen Thompson kept Houston in it with a flurry of finishes around the rim, and Fred VanVleet orchestrated two quick scores — an alley-oop dunk for Clint Capela and a 23-foot running jumper for Reed Sheppard — to give Houston a 16-11 edge. Then Milwaukee answered. Herro scored seven straight points to tie it at 16, and AJ Green's 27-foot three-pointer with 2:26 left gave the Bucks a 19-16 lead. That shot swung Milwaukee's home win probability from 31% to 36% — the biggest single-play swing of the game. It looked, briefly, like Milwaukee had seized control. Thompson and Bogdan Bogdanovic had other ideas, combining for the final seven points of the quarter to send Houston into the second up 23-21.
The second quarter is where Houston buried Milwaukee alive. Durant opened with two free throws, then assisted a Thompson dunk, then threw down a running dunk of his own — a 10-0 run to start the period that pushed the lead to 29-21. Tari Eason extended it to 31-21. Milwaukee never got closer than seven points the rest of the half. Jabari Smith Jr. hit back-to-back 24-foot three-pointers, VanVleet converted a three-shot free throw trip, and by the time Clint Capela finished an alley-oop layup off a VanVleet feed with 2:19 left in the half, Houston led 47-28. The Rockets outscored Milwaukee by 24 points in that second quarter alone, and the game was effectively over at the break.
The final was 132-100, and the numbers across Houston's lineup were genuinely impressive. VanVleet led with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. Thompson added 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Durant was efficient and disruptive — 18 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks. Bogdanovic chipped in 16 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals. For Milwaukee, Herro's 23 points and Jaime Jaquez Jr.'s 19 were the only real bright spots on a night that appears to have exposed significant defensive vulnerabilities. Caris LeVert was a DNP — coach's decision — though what that means for Milwaukee's rotation going forward is unclear. What is clear: Houston looks like a team with multiple ways to hurt you, and Milwaukee, at least on this night, had no answer for any of them.