Bogut has 24 points, 20 rebounds as Bucks overwhelm Knicks 83-67

Bogut’s 24 points, 20 boards overwhelm Knicks

NEW YORK — Andrew Bogut had 24 points and 20 rebounds in his third career 20-20 game, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the New York Knicks 83-67 on Monday night for their third straight victory.

Limited to just 5½ minutes at Madison Square Garden three weeks ago because of a migraine, Bogut played 36 this time and overwhelmed the Knicks’ smaller front line. He shot 12 of 15 from the field in his first 20-20 game since Dec. 13, 2008, against Indiana, according to STATS, LLC.

John Salmons scored 15 points for the Bucks, who forced the Knicks into their worst offensive performance of the season and completed a three-game sweep of the series.

Tracy McGrady scored 15 points in his second game with the Knicks, but shot only 5 of 14. He wasn’t alone in struggling, as the team hit just 33.8 percent from the field in its season-high seventh straight loss.

Newcomer Sergio Rodriguez replaced Chris Duhon in the lineup, but Duhon couldn’t have done any worse than the Spanish point guard, who had four points and one assist and shot 2 for 8 in 30 minutes.

Bogut seemed on his way to a dominant effort in the Bucks’ 114-107 win here on Feb. 5, making all three shots for six points before he was forced to leave. He was the one causing the pain this time, helping the Bucks improve to 27-28 with their fourth straight road victory.

Despite its woeful shooting, New York was within six with under 9 minutes. Jerry Stackhouse then made a 3-pointer before consecutive baskets by Luke Ridnour and Salmons made it 74-61 with 7:49 left. Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni promised his team would speed up the tempo after last week’s trades, yet finished nowhere near its previous worst scoring night of 78 points against Dallas on Jan. 24.

The Bucks, who came in a game out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, swept the series for the first time since going 4-0 in 1990-91.

Milwaukee never trailed in the first half, but the Knicks put together their only prolonged stretch of good offense with a 12-0 burst that turned a 10-point deficit into a 53-51 lead on Wilson Chandler’s layup with 5:20 remaining in the third quarter.

The Bucks answered immediately with 13 straight points, including consecutive layups by Bogut, to open a 64-53 advantage on two free throws by Brandon Jennings with 41 seconds to go. They led by nine entering the fourth.

Bogut scored 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds in the first quarter as Milwaukee opened a 27-20 lead. The Bucks pushed the lead into double digits early in the second while the Knicks continued to misfire, and they led 47-41 at halftime after limiting New York to 37.5 percent shooting.

NOTES: The Knicks celebrated the 40th anniversary of their 1970 NBA championship team at halftime. Willis Reed came out last, just as he did in returning from injury to help New York beat the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 7. “The memories abound and astound,” Hall of Fame guard Walt Frazier told the crowd. … Milwaukee has won seven of the last eight meetings.