MILWAUKEE -- — Giannis Antetokounmpo had 34 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out and the Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Indiana Pacers 126-119 on Saturday night.

After trailing 105-84 with 11 minutes left, Indiana made a frantic comeback and cut Milwaukee’s lead to 122-119 on Andrew Nembhard’s 3-pointer with 12.5 seconds remaining. The Bucks had led 117-106 when Antetokounmpo fouled out with 2:46 left.

Taurean Prince and Kevin Porter Jr. went 4 of 4 on free-throw attempts down the stretch to preserve the Bucks' victory.

Damian Lillard added 25 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists as the Bucks (38-28) took a one-game lead over Indiana in the race for fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

The Bucks went 3-1 against the Pacers this season and would own the head-to-head tiebreaker if they end up with the same record.

Aaron Nesmith scored 30, Pascal Siakam 26 and Tyrese Haliburton 24 for the Pacers. Haliburton also had 15 assists to match his season high.

The two teams were meeting four nights after Haliburton’s four-point play with 3.4 seconds left gave the Pacers a 115-114 victory over the Bucks in Indiana. That created a playoff-type atmosphere Saturday with a spirited crowd frequently booing the Pacers.

Takeaways

Pacers: Playing one night after a 112-100 triumph at Philadephia, the Pacers could have let up after falling behind by 21 in the fourth quarter. They instead made this one come down to the wire.

Bucks: Milwaukee has won two straight games to bounce back from a three-game skid

Key moments

Prince made a few big plays down the stretch to help the Bucks survive. He made a 3-pointer with 1:50 left after Indiana cut the lead to six. Prince also went 4 of 4 from the foul line over the final 18.2 seconds.

Key stat

Milwaukee shot 54.4% to help the Bucks withstand 15 turnovers.

Up next

The Bucks host the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday. The Pacers visit the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday.

------

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Play By Play

Recent plays and game events

TIME	PLAY
12:00	Myles Turner vs. Brook Lopez (Andrew Nembhard gains possession)	0	0
11:55	Andrew Nembhard misses two point shot	0	0
11:54	Damian Lillard defensive rebound	0	0
11:45	Andrew Nembhard shooting foul	0	0
11:45	Damian Lillard makes free throw 1 of 3	1	0
11:45	Damian Lillard makes free throw 2 of 3	2	0
11:45	Damian Lillard makes free throw 3 of 3	3	0
11:27	Myles Turner makes 14-foot jumper (Pascal Siakam assists)	3	2
11:15	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes driving layup	5	2
11:03	Aaron Nesmith makes 25-foot three point jumper (Tyrese Haliburton assists)	5	5
10:36	Brook Lopez makes 15-foot jumper (Damian Lillard assists)	7	5
10:16	Giannis Antetokounmpo blocks Aaron Nesmith 's 6-foot driving layup	7	5
10:15	Taurean Prince defensive rebound	7	5
10:08	Damian Lillard misses 23-foot three point step back jumpshot	7	5
10:04	Tyrese Haliburton defensive rebound	7	5
10:00	Myles Turner misses 26-foot three point shot	7	5
10:00	Pascal Siakam offensive rebound	7	5
9:51	Myles Turner misses 29-foot three point jumper	7	5
9:48	Brook Lopez defensive rebound	7	5
9:33	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes 18-foot pullup jump shot	9	5
9:18	Myles Turner misses 23-foot three point jumper	9	5
9:15	Giannis Antetokounmpo defensive rebound	9	5
9:08	Giannis Antetokounmpo lost ball turnover (Andrew Nembhard steals)	9	5
9:03	Giannis Antetokounmpo shooting foul	9	5
9:03	Myles Turner makes free throw 1 of 2	9	6
9:03	Myles Turner makes free throw 2 of 2	9	7
8:41	Damian Lillard misses 18-foot step back jumpshot	9	7
8:38	Pascal Siakam defensive rebound	9	7
8:29	Pascal Siakam misses 28-foot three point jumper	9	7
8:25	Giannis Antetokounmpo defensive rebound	9	7
8:14	Kyle Kuzma makes 18-foot pullup jump shot (Giannis Antetokounmpo assists)	11	7
8:02	Pascal Siakam makes 12-foot two point shot (Tyrese Haliburton assists)	11	9
7:39	Brook Lopez offensive foul	11	9
7:39	Brook Lopez turnover	11	9
7:23	Aaron Nesmith misses driving floating jump shot	11	9
7:22	Damian Lillard defensive rebound	11	9
7:09	Kyle Kuzma misses 24-foot three point jumper	11	9
7:09	Pacers defensive team rebound	11	9
6:57	Andrew Nembhard misses 23-foot three point jumper	11	9
6:54	Giannis Antetokounmpo defensive rebound	11	9
6:42	Kyle Kuzma makes 1-foot driving floating jump shot (Giannis Antetokounmpo assists)	13	9
6:34	Tyrese Haliburton makes 29-foot three pointer	13	12
6:12	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes dunk (Damian Lillard assists)	15	12
5:59	Tyrese Haliburton makes 26-foot three pointer	15	15
5:47	Kyle Kuzma misses 23-foot three point jumper	15	15
5:44	Myles Turner defensive rebound	15	15
5:38	Myles Turner makes 28-foot three point shot (Tyrese Haliburton assists)	15	18
5:15	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes driving dunk	17	18
5:05	Kyle Kuzma shooting foul	17	18
5:05	Bucks Full timeout	17	18
5:05	Gary Trent Jr. enters the game for Damian Lillard	17	18
5:05	Kevin Porter Jr. enters the game for Kyle Kuzma	17	18
5:05	Bennedict Mathurin enters the game for Andrew Nembhard	17	18
5:05	Obi Toppin enters the game for Aaron Nesmith	17	18
5:05	T.J. McConnell enters the game for Pascal Siakam	17	18
5:05	Myles Turner makes free throw 1 of 2	17	19
5:05	Myles Turner makes free throw 2 of 2	17	20
4:56	Taurean Prince makes 22-foot three pointer (Kevin Porter Jr. assists)	20	20
4:37	Obi Toppin misses 23-foot three point jumper	20	20
4:34	Kevin Porter Jr. defensive rebound	20	20
4:28	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes two point shot	22	20
4:21	Bennedict Mathurin bad pass (Taurean Prince steals)	22	20
4:13	Brook Lopez makes 2-foot driving dunk (Kevin Porter Jr. assists)	24	20
4:11	Pacers Full timeout	20	20
3:56	Tyrese Haliburton makes 15-foot pullup jump shot (T.J. McConnell assists)	24	22
3:41	Gary Trent Jr. makes 25-foot three point jumper (Kevin Porter Jr. assists)	27	22
3:26	Bennedict Mathurin makes 24-foot three point jumper (Obi Toppin assists)	27	25
3:04	Giannis Antetokounmpo makes 19-foot pullup jump shot (Brook Lopez assists)	29	25
2:49	Obi Toppin bad pass (Taurean Prince steals)	29	25
2:44	Jericho Sims enters the game for Brook Lopez	29	25
2:44	Damian Lillard enters the game for Taurean Prince	29	25
2:44	Kyle Kuzma enters the game for Giannis Antetokounmpo	29	25
2:44	Pascal Siakam enters the game for Tyrese Haliburton	29	25
2:44	Ben Sheppard enters the game for Myles Turner	29	25
2:44	Thomas Bryant enters the game for Obi Toppin	29	25
2:41	Gary Trent Jr. makes 24-foot three point jumper (Damian Lillard assists)	32	25
2:25	Thomas Bryant misses 27-foot three point jumper	32	25
2:22	Gary Trent Jr. defensive rebound	32	25
2:09	Damian Lillard makes 30-foot three point jumper (Gary Trent Jr. assists)	35	25
1:46	T.J. McConnell makes 17-foot pullup jump shot	35	27
1:27	Kyle Kuzma misses 11-foot two point shot	35	27
1:25	Thomas Bryant defensive rebound	35	27
1:05	Ben Sheppard misses 22-foot three point step back jumpshot	35	27
1:04	Pacers offensive team rebound	35	27
1:04	shot clock turnover	35	27
49.1	Kevin Porter Jr. misses 26-foot three point pullup jump shot	35	27
46.1	Pascal Siakam defensive rebound	35	27
33.0	Bennedict Mathurin makes 26-foot three pointer	35	30
9.0	T.J. McConnell shooting foul	35	30
9.0	Kevin Porter Jr. makes free throw 1 of 3	36	30
9.0	Kevin Porter Jr. makes free throw 2 of 3	37	30
9.0	Andre Jackson Jr. enters the game for Damian Lillard	37	30
9.0	Tyrese Haliburton enters the game for T.J. McConnell	37	30
9.0	Kevin Porter Jr. makes free throw 3 of 3	38	30
3.1	Andre Jackson Jr. personal foul	38	30
1.0	Tyrese Haliburton misses 28-foot three point pullup jump shot	38	30
0.0	Pacers offensive team rebound	38	30
0.0	End of the 1st Quarter	38	30

Related Tags

Indiana Pacers vs Milwaukee Bucks Live StreamWatch Indiana Pacers vs Milwaukee Bucks FreePacers vs Bucks Live ScoreIND vs MIL GameNBA Stream Indiana PacersNBA Stream Milwaukee BucksFiserv ForumNBA Live StreamBasketball Streams

Explore More

Indiana Pacers Standings Milwaukee Bucks Standings Indiana Pacers Stats Milwaukee Bucks Stats NBA Standings NBA Schedule

Article Sections

Check all game sections

Game Information

Time, Location & Referees

Venue

Fiserv Forum

Milwaukee, WI

Date & Time

12:00 AM, March 16, 2025

Coverage

FanDuel SN WI, FanDuel SN IN, NBA League Pass

Attendance

17,729

Referees

Jacyn Goble, Tyler Ford, Jenna Schroeder

2025-26 Central Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
Detroit	44	14	.759	W2
Cleveland	37	24	.607	L2
Milwaukee	26	32	.448	L1
Chicago	24	36	.400	L11
Indiana	15	45	.250	L5

Need Help?

Explore our comprehensive NBA streams guide for all available options and platform comparisons.

View Streaming Guide

Bucks

Pacers

Bucks take big lead and then hang on down the stretch to beat Pacers 126-119

Game Analysis

Regular Season Series

Playoff Series

Game Analysis

Game Stats

Game Article

Game Recap