FINAL FROM THE UNITED CENTER: Milwaukee 112, Bulls 99 (Bulls: 13-44, 5-23 at home)
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: LaVine - 27, Bucks: Antetokounmpo - 29
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Markkanen - 17, Bucks: Antetokounmpo - 17
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: LaVine - 7, Bucks: Antetokounmpo - 8
CCI RECAP: The Bucks pulled away from the Bulls in the fourth quarter as Giannis was tremendous with a 29-17-8, 4 blocked shots game. In my opinion, he is the MVP. There are so many worthy candidates but he is doing the heavy lifting in Milwaukee. Eric Bledsoe was a difference maker in the final quarter scoring 12 of his 19 points. The loss offset outstanding performances by Zach LaVine (27 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists). Lauri Markkanen (20 points, 17 rebounds, his fourth straight double-double and seventh in the last eight games). Otto Porter Jr notched 18 points and is averaging 17 in his first three games in a Bulls uniform. Robin Lopez with 17 points. The Bulls have lost 11 straight at home.
CCI IN THE LOCKER ROOM: Coach Boylen: "With 5 minutes to go, we got six stops in a row. That's good...but you gotta score too."
UP NEXT: Home with Memphis Wednesday.
CCI 24 SECONDS - NBA NEWS and NOTES
Toronto 127, Brooklyn 125: Kawhi Leonard with the go ahead hoop with 4.2 seconds left. Leonard scored 30 points. Marc Gasol scored 16-11 in the fourth quarter. Raps guard Fred Van Vleet is sidelined for three weeks with a left thumb injury. The Raps agreed to terms with veteran guard Jeremy Lin who reached a buyout agreement with Atlanta.
Cleveland 107, New York 104: Someone had to win, right? Right? The Knicks have now lost 17 straight and 30 of their last 32. Enough said. The Cavs "improved" to 12-45.
Houston 120, Dallas 104: James Harden with 31, his 30th straight game of scoring 30 or more. He's one game away from tying Wilt Chamberlain for the second longest streak of 30 point games in NBA history. Chamberlain also holds the record for 30 point streaks with 65. Incredible.
Minnesota 130, Los Angeles Clippers 120: Derrick Rose returned to the floor after missing time with an ankle injury and poured in 22 points. Lou Williams scored a season high 45 points off the bench and went a perfect 16-16 from the free throw line.
Oklahoma City 120, Portland 111: Russell Westbrook set an NBA record with his 10th straight triple-double (21-14-11). Paul George added a triple double as well (47-12-10). I hope you appreciate what Westbrook is doing...do NOT take this player for granted.
Denver 103, Miami 87: The Nuggets improved to 18-1 when holding opponents to under 100 points.
Detroit 121, Washington 112: Andre Drummond with a monster 32-17 game. Blake Griffin had 31-9-9. The Pistons suddenly have won four straight, their longest win streak of the season.Bobby Portis scored 24 for Washington.
Indiana 99, Charlotte 90: The Pacers have won six straight-all without Victor Oladipo.
A pleasure meeting the incredibly talented actor-vocal artist Miguel Cervantes, who plays the lead role in "Hamilton." Miguel had a fantastic evening catching the Bulls on his off night and it was thrill to engage in conversation with him prior to the tipoff.
Thanks for reading CCI. Always a pleasure. Reach me at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls