Devin Booker knocked down a 20-foot jumper with 1.7 seconds remaining to give the Phoenix Suns a 108-106 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Bucks on Monday night.
Kevin Durant recorded 38 points, eight rebounds and five assists as the Suns (35-37) won their fourth consecutive game. Booker added 19 points and 12 assists, Ryan Dunn had 12 points and nine rebounds and Nick Richards contributed 10 points and 10 rebounds for Phoenix.
The contest marked the first time Phoenix’s Mike Budenholzer coached against Milwaukee since the Bucks fired him after the 2022-23 season. Budenholzer guided the Milwaukee Bucks to the 2020-21 NBA title.
Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points, 10 rebounds and five assists for the Bucks (40-31), who dropped to 2-2 on a five-game road trip. Brook Lopez added 23 points and 10 rebounds but his 18-foot baseline jumper bounced off the rim as time retired.
Gary Trent Jr. scored 19 points off the bench and Kyle Kuzma scored 15 points for Milwaukee, which was without Damian Lillard (right calf strain) for the third straight game.
Phoenix remained in a virtual tie with the Dallas Mavericks for the final play-in spot in the Western Conference. The Mavericks defeated the Brooklyn Nets earlier Monday night.
The Suns were without Bradley Beal (left hamstring strain) for the fourth consecutive contest.
Kuzma converted a four-point play with 1:22 left to give the Bucks a 105-103 lead.
Durant drilled a 3-pointer to put Phoenix back ahead at 106-105 with 26.2 seconds left. Lopez split two free throws to tie it with 10.7 seconds remaining before Booker’s decisive hoop.
Milwaukee shot 44.6 percent from the field, including 12 of 39 from 3-point range.
Phoenix connected on 47.6 percent of its attempts and was 14 of 36 from behind the arc.
Tyus Jones’ bucket opened the fourth quarter to cap a 7-0 run as the Suns took an 83-78 lead.
Milwaukee responded with eight of the next 10 points. Trent completed the run with a 3-pointer to give the Bucks an 86-85 lead with 10:13 to play.
Durant later hit a 3-pointer to start an 8-0 burst. Ryan Dunn followed with a dunk and a trey as Phoenix took a 98-92 edge with 5:41 remaining.
A 3-pointer by Durant made it 101-94 with 4:59 left before Antetokounmpo scored five points during a Milwaukee 7-0 run. Antetokounmpo capped it with a 3-pointer to knot the score at 101 with 3:23 to go.
Antetokounmpo had 15 first-half points and Lopez added 13 as the Bucks led 58-54 at the break. Durant had 16 points and Booker tallied 15 in the half for Phoenix.
–Field Level Media
