The Milwaukee Bucks and Oklahoma City Thunder will return to the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Wednesday to face off in the final of the Emirates NBA Cup.
The Bucks are 14-11 for the season and currently in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings, while the Thunder are 20-5 and lead the West.
Match preview
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After missing out on the final of the NBA Cup last season, the Milwaukee Bucks will now have the chance to get their hands on the trophy after beating the Atlanta Hawks 110-102 in the semi-final on Saturday.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the team in the victory, putting up 32 points 14 rebounds and nine assists, Damian Lillard added 25 points and seven assists, and Brook Lopez chipped in with 16 points.
The Hawks fought back well after losing the second quarter of the match 29-21 by winning the third 34-27, but Doc Rivers' side took control in the final quarter, outscoring their opponents 28-19 en route to the victory.
After a shaky 2-8 start to the season, the Bucks now seem to have found their momentum, rebounding with a 12-3 record over their last 15 games while maintaining a perfect 6-0 record in this competition.
For the season, Milwaukee are averaging 113.3 points per game (14th in the league) and are allowing 111.9 (12th in the NBA), though they have only covered the spread in 41.7% of games to date (10-14-1).
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Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Thunder became the first team in the West to reach 20 wins this season, as they saw off the Houston Rockets 111-96 to book their spot in the final in midweek.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered another MVP-worthy performance with 32 points, eight rebounds and six assists, and he was supported well by Jalen Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein, who got 20 and 21 points respectively.
The Thunder faced an early deficit in the first quarter and went into the break down 42-41, but they answered back with an 11-0 run for 34 points in the third frame and held on to their lead for the win.
Next up for Mark Daigneault's men are the Bucks, a side who they beat twice in three meetings last season, including a 125-107 victory at home in their most recent encounter back in mid-April.
OKC are a top-10 side on both ends this season, averaging 2.3 points more per game than their upcoming opponent while they possess the league's best defence which allows just 103.5 PPG on average to date.
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Team News
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The Bucks had Antetokounmpo, MarJon Beauchamp and Khris Middleton listed as questionable ahead of the match against the Hawks, but all three players featured in the game and should be fit for Wednesday.
The Greek Freak is now averaging 32.7 points and 6.1 assists per game for the season, and Lillard is putting up 25.7 points per night while leading the team with 7.5 assists on average.
Oklahoma, on the other hand, have been hit with several injury blows in recent weeks and are expected to be without at least six players for this match, including Chet Holmgren and Jaylin Williams due to a hip fracture and hamstring strain respectively.
Ousmane Dieng (finger), Nikola Topic (torn ACL) and Adam Flagler (hand fracture) are also sidelined for the foreseeable future, while Alex Ducas is on G League assignment.
Milwaukee Bucks possible starting five:
Lillard, Jackson Jr.; Prince, Antetokounmpo; Lopez
Oklahoma City Thunder possible starting five:
Gilgeous-Alexander, Wallace; Dort, Williams; Hartenstein
We say: Oklahoma City Thunder to win by 3+ points
Both these sides have plenty of firepower in attack to beat any team on their day, but OKC's elite-level defence has been incredible this season, and we feel that could be the difference-maker in this match.
Devesh Jaganath
