MIAMI — In an exciting match on Tuesday night, Damian Lillard showcased his skills with 37 points and 12 assists, leading the Milwaukee Bucks to a 106-103 victory against the Miami Heat as part of the NBA Cup competition.

Despite holding a commanding 22-point lead in the second half, the Bucks had to fight to secure their win. Brook Lopez contributed 13 points, and Bobby Portis added 11 points, helping Milwaukee string together five consecutive victories to improve their record to 9-9, marking their first time at the .500 mark since the start of the season.

With this win, the Bucks improved their standing to 3-0 in Cup play, placing them a half-game in front of Detroit, who currently holds a 2-0 record in the East Group B.

For the Heat, Jimmy Butler led the charge with 23 points, supported by Tyler Herro with 18 points, Terry Rozier with 17, and Bam Adebayo with 16. Miami managed to tie the game at 96-96 thanks to a layup from Butler and narrowed the gap to a single point on three occasions afterward, but they were unable to take the lead throughout the contest.

The Heat faced a significant challenge, as they were outperformed from beyond the arc, getting outscored 60-30 in 3-point shooting, and they now sit at 1-2 in Cup play. The Bucks played without their star player Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was a late scratch due to swelling in his left knee.

In noteworthy takeaways, Lillard’s achievement of reaching 35 points and 10 assists marks the 30th occasion in his career, tying him with Allen Iverson for the ninth-most times in NBA history. Oscar Robertson holds the record with an impressive 121. Meanwhile, Miami has struggled with large deficits at home this season, finding themselves down by 22 points or more in two out of seven home games thus far. This scenario occurred only six times during the entire previous season.

A significant moment in the game came late when AJ Green hit two consecutive 3-pointers just after the Heat cut the lead to one. His shots swung the momentum back to the Bucks, pushing their lead to 101-97 and 104-100.

In terms of statistics, Lillard’s 37 points rank as the second highest scored by a Bucks player against Miami in the regular season, just behind Mo Williams, who scored 38 on February 3, 2007.

Looking ahead, the Bucks will be playing at home against Washington on Saturday, while the Heat will travel to face Charlotte on Wednesday.