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With Eurobasket action set to begin in around a week, Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is ramping up to try and get his home country of Greece some silverware. On Wednesday, Antetokounmpo's Greece faced off against Kristaps Porzingis' Latvia and came out on top, taking a 104-86 win in Athens.
The Bucks star did not need much time to inflict his damage against the Latvians. He only needed 15 minutes of play to put up 25 points and 10 rebounds — an incredible showing, even for someone like Antetokounmpo who's made such games look routine. He made nine of his 12 shots and was a force to be reckoned with on both ends of the floor, leaving Latvia little chance at a win.
After the game, Porzingis, who's now with the Atlanta Hawks, spoke highly of Antetokounmpo and how the Bucks star dominated proceedings even in an exhibition setting.
“It was tough. It was a tough game for us. Giannis had an unbelievable first half. We could have done a better job with him, to be fair, but today was just a tough day today for us, and we look forward to bouncing back tomorrow,” Porzingis said, per BasketNews.com.
For Porzingis, he rued how his team dealt with the Bucks star in the first half, forcing Latvia to fight an uphill battle all night long.
“The first half was, was a tough matchup. He’s definitely one of the top players in the world, and he made it tough for us. He looked good, he looked fresh, and he made it tough for us. I think second half we did a better job with him, but I guess he was on limited minutes. But yeah, he’s looking really good and he’s always a tough matchup no matter what, so we look forward to having a better, better game tomorrow [Thursdsay] against Italy,” Porzingis added.
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo already in midseason form
Antetokounmpo is going to have to shoulder a major burden for the Bucks if they were to remain in postseason contention for next season. But fans need not worry if Antetokounmpo is already playing like this. If he continues to dominate the paint and be an unstoppable force, then Greece could end up being a contender for the Eurobasket crown.
Greece will open Eurobasket pool play action against Italy on August 28 at 2:30 PM E.T., and Bucks fans will want to tune in to see Antetokounmpo be in MVP form this early in the season.
