Milwaukee--- Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks made sure coach Mike Budenholzer's first night at work went easy.
Antetokounmpo had 30 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to help Milwaukee beat the Golden State Warriors 118-99 on Thursday night in Budenholzer's return from the NBA's COVID-19 protocol. Antetokounmpo had his third triple-double of the season and 28th of his career.
Budenholzer lost four games to health and safety protocols, with assistant Darwin Hamm taking over as acting head coach. The box went 1-3.
"I think Coach Darwin did a great job leading the team, coaching the team and holding us accountable," Antetokounmpo said. "But, obviously, it's great to have Coach Bud healthy, happy and ready for us to go."
Chris Middleton scored 23 points for the Bucks, Bobby Portis 20 and Grayson Allen 15.
Milwaukee never looked back, running for a 77–38 halftime advantage and handing the Warriors a fourth loss in five games. Antetokounmpo had 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in the first half.
"I think tonight was a good focus from us," Budenholzer said. "I think when it starts on the defensive end, that's usually when we're at our best. A team like the Warriors, players like (Stephen) Curry and (Clay) Thompson, they bring out the best in you. They bring the highest focus."
The Bucks were just two points away from their biggest halftime lead in franchise history, a record they set this season. Milwaukee took a 77-36 lead in a 123-92 victory over Orlando on November 22.
"We just got off to a terrible start where everything went wrong on both ends of the floor," Curry said.
The Warriors didn't have Drummond Green due to a left calf tightness, which also kept them from losing Tuesday night in Memphis and had to play less than a minute into Sunday's win over Cleveland.
Milwaukee was missing guard Jew Holiday for the fourth game in a row. Living within the NBA's health and safety protocol, Holiday crashed out of a January 2 victory in Brooklyn and has since played three games with a pain in his left ankle.
Golden State overtook the Bucks in the second half and cut the deficit to 18 with Juan Toscano-Anderson's 3-pointer at 9:39, but that's as close as the Warriors will get.
"I know we've just kicked our butts, but we're in a bad patch in our season," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "It happens to every team, every year with very few exceptions. We're in a little bit of a rut and we were playing with a team that was ready and played great, great in the first half. We're a little different We just have to get back on track, and we will."
Andrew Wiggins led the Warriors with 16 points. Jonathan Cuminga had 15, Curry 12 and Thompson 11.
Tip-ins
Warriors: With the Warriors playing back-to-back nights, he plans to rest Thompson on Friday night in Chicago. Thursday marked Thompson's third game after being out for more than 2 1/2 years due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament and Achilles tendon injury. "Part of his recovery process is that he won't play back-to-back quick," Kerr said. ... Gary Peyton II played in less than five minutes, before a lower back tightness ruled him out for the rest of the game. ...Assistant coach Kenny Atkinson entered into health and safety protocols and was not on the bench on Thursday.
Bucks: George Hill returned after missing four games while in health and safety protocol. Hill went goalless in 17 1/2 minutes but had four assists. ... The Bucks signed guard Lindell Wigginton to a two-way contract and requested a waiver on guard Javonte Smart, who averaged 2.4 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 12.3 minutes while appearing in 13 games. ... Budenholzer said that he is feeling very well now but there were some days that he did not feel well while being in protocol. "I think everyone goes through a slightly different experience," he said.
Next
Warrior: Friday night in Chicago.
The Bucks: Host Toronto on Saturday.