Middleton’s pull-up jumper with 9.9 seconds left lifts Bucks past Mavericks
Khris Middleton made a pull-up jumper with 9.9 seconds left, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Dallas Mavericks 96-95.
Dirk Nowitzki’s 2 free throws had put the Mavericks ahead 95-94 with 38 seconds left.
The Mavericks had the ball down 1 after a timeout, but Deron Williams missed a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer that would have put them ahead.
During clutch time, the Bucks outscored the Mavericks 7-5. Middleton scored 4 of the Bucks’ 7 on 1 for 2 shooting and 2 for 3 at the line. In the fourth quarter, Michael Carter-Williams had 3 of his 5 steals. With 13 seconds left, John Henson stole the ball from Nowitzki, and Middleton’s pull-up jumper off it put the Bucks ahead 96-95.
Middleton scored 27 points. Henson added 16 points on 8 for 9 shooting off the bench, and Carter-Williams had 15 points, a season-high 12 rebounds, 8 assists and 5 steals.
For the Mavericks, Nowitzki had 20 points and 9 rebounds. Zaza Pachulia had 9 points and 15 rebounds. Devin Harris scored 19 points off the bench.
The Mavericks gave up 15 offensive rebounds, about 6 more than usual for the shots the Bucks missed. The Bucks outscored the Mavericks 56-32 in the paint.