Lillard scores 26 points, Antetokounmpo adds 25 points and 16 rebounds as Bucks beat Spurs 121-105

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Damian Lillard had 26 points and eight assists, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 25 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the San Antonio Spurs 121-105 on Wednesday night.

Brook Lopez scored 22 points, including 17 in the first half, and AJ Green and Gary Trent each added 14 as the Bucks won their second consecutive game after losing four of five.

Keldon Johnson scored 24 points to lead the Spurs. Chris Paul added 18 points, Harrison Barnes had 14 and Devin Vassell 11. Victor Wembanyama had 10 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks

With the score tied at 33 early in the second quarter, the Bucks went on a 32-13 run to close the first half, led by the 3-point shooting of Green, Lopez and Lillard. The Spurs opened the second half on a 16-5 run to pull within 10 and Paul’s third 3-pointer of the quarter pulled San Antonio within eight. However, Milwaukee pushed the lead back to 13 by the end of the third quarter.

The Bucks led by 26 in the fourth.

Milwaukee shot 19 for 42 on 3s.

Starting forward Jeremy Sochan (back), averaging 13.4 points per game, sat for the Spurs.

Spurs: San Antonio had no players in double figures in the first half. Spurs finished 18 for 52 on 3-pointers.

Bucks: Antetokounmpo had 11 points, five rebounds and three assists in the first quarter. Lillard didn’t score his first points until making a layup with 10:46 left in the second quarter.

With 30 seconds left in the second quarter, Antetokounmpo blocked Vassell’s dunk attempt and Lopez made a 3 at the other end to close out the half and give Milwaukee a 19-point advantage.

The Bucks were 12 for 24 on 3s in the first half with Green making 4 of 5, including a 30-footer.

Spurs visit the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday, and Bucks play at Orlando on Friday.

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Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo shoots past San Antonio Spurs' Harrison Barnes during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Damian Lillard gets past San Antonio Spurs' Tre Jones during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Bobby Portis shoots past San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama and Sandro Mamukelashvili during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers reacts during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' AJ Green shoots a three in front of San Antonio Spurs' Stephon Castle during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Brook Lopez shoots past San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

San Antonio Spurs' Keldon Johnson knocks the ball from Milwaukee Bucks' Damian Lillard during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo dunks during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Damian Lillard gets past San Antonio Spurs' Stephon Castle during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

A long-awaited La Nina has finally appeared, but the periodic cooling of Pacific Ocean waters is weak and unlikely to cause as many weather problems as usual, meteorologists said Thursday.

La Nina, the flip side of the better-known El Nino, is an irregular rising of unusually cold water in a key part of the central equatorial Pacific that changes weather patterns worldwide.

The last El Nino was declared finished last June, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasters have been expecting La Nina for months. Its delayed arrival may have been influenced — or masked — by the world's oceans being much warmer the last few years, said Michelle L'Heureux, head of NOAA's El Nino team.

“It’s totally not clear why this La Nina is so late to form, and I have no doubt it’s going to be a topic of a lot of research,” L'Heureux said.

But even as the temperature signature was late to arrive and small at that, L'Heureux said some of the effects across the globe have shown up and forecasters have made seasonal predictions based on La Nina conditions.

In the United States, La Ninas tend to cause drier weather in the South and West. They tend to make weather wetter in parts of Indonesia, northern Australia and southern Africa, L'Heureux said. They typically bring more Atlantic hurricanes in summer months, but L’Heureux forecast that this La Nina will have dissipated by the summer.

El Nino often leads to rainier weather in the United States, and tends to increase temperatures globally while La Nina has the opposite effect. Studies have found that La Nina droughts have been costlier than weather extremes linked to El Nino.

The last La Nina ended in 2023 after an unusual three-year stretch.

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FILE - People cover up from falling rain Dec. 24, 2024, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

FILE - Surfers catch waves in the Pacific Ocean off of Ho'okipa Beach Park, Nov. 22, 2024, near Paia, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)