Giannis Antetokounmpo has turned on a scoring display as his Milwaukee Bucks won a fifth consecutive NBA game, 142-129, over the Washington Wizards.
The Greek superstar bagged 42 points on 20-of-23 shooting in Monday night's match in Washington.
Antetokounmpo shot 87.0 per cent from the field, the highest mark in a game by a player with at least 20 attempts since Mike Woodson of the Kansas City Kings went 22 of 24 (91.7 per cent) in a 48-point effort against Houston on February 20, 1983.
Washington dropped a sixth straight, but not without putting up a decent fight against the star-studded Bucks. Jordan Poole scored 30 points for Washington, and Kyle Kuzma added 22 points and 13 assists.
In Detroit, Reggie Jackson scored 21 points and carried defending champions Denver in the fourth quarter after two-time MVP Nikola Jokic was ejected as the Nuggets handed Detroit their 12th straight loss - 107-103.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 20 points and Michael Porter Jr. finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Nuggets (10-4).
Jokic and Denver coach Michael Malone were ejected after arguing calls. Malone was thrown out for coming onto the court to dispute a call late in the first quarter, and Jokic was tossed for picking up a second technical with 1:22 left in the second period.
In Charlotte, Miles Bridges hit a 3-pointer with 6.6 seconds left in overtime as he Hornets beat Boston to snap a six-game home losing streak in a 121-118 win.
LaMelo Ball finished with 36 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, and Gordon Hayward added 20 points for the Hornets, who rallied from an 18-point deficit.
Jayson Tatum finished with 45 points for the Celtics, but missed a free throw with 5.2 seconds left that would have tied the game.
In San Antonio, Paul George scored 28 points, Kawhi Leonard added 21 and Los Angeles rolled past Victor Wembanyama and San Antonio by 124-99.
James Harden added 13 points and 10 assists as the Clippers won their second straight game with him in their team after dropping their first five games since acquiring him from Philadelphia.
Wembanyama, the No.1 pick in the draft, was held to nine points and three rebounds.
In Chicago, Bam Adebayo had 23 points and 11 rebounds as Miami topped Chicago 118-100, two nights after blowing a 21-point lead in the same building.
Jimmy Butler scored 16 points against his former team, while Adebayo earned his eighth double-double of the season.
In Minneapolis, Anthony Edwards had 23 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, Karl-Anthony Towns scored 20 points, and their Western Conference-leading Minnesota beat the New York Knicks 117-100.
Minnesota (10-3) are 6-0 at home - tying a franchise record to start a season - and have won nine of their past 10 games.
In New Orleans, Brandon Ingram hit all five of his 3-pointers and led all scorers with 31 points, and Zion Williamson dominated the paint by scoring 26 points on 12-for-16 shooting to power New Orleans to a 129-93 win over Sacramento.
Australian Associated Press
