MILWAUKEE (AP) Tony Snell scored 16 points, Jason Terry had season highs of 15 points and five 3-pointers, and the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Charlotte Hornets 89-79 on Monday night.
Center Greg Monroe provided punch in the paint with 16 points and nine rebounds for the Bucks, who clinched at least the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs with the win.
Giannis Antetokounmpo picked up his third triple-double of the season with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, clinching the feat after firing a pass with 54 seconds left to Khris Middleton for a 3.
The Hornets led for much of the first three quarters despite being without leading scorer Kemba Walker because of a hyperextended left knee.
Trailing 66-61 going into the fourth, Milwaukee asserted control in the final period with Terry hitting from the outside and Monroe controlling the middle.
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 13 points for the Hornets.
But Charlotte shot just 5 of 20 from the floor in the fourth quarter, when the Bucks were only starting to take off. Milwaukee was 16 of 28 (57 percent) from 3-point range, including 6 of 8 in the fourth.
Antetokounmpo added to his nightly collection of highlight-reel plays with alley-oop dunk off an inbounds pass from Middleton with 6:09 left to give the Bucks a 78-73 lead.
Jeremy Lamb had 12 points for Charlotte. Treveon Graham also had 12 points, a career high.
An 18-1 run that stretched between the first and second quarters helped the Hornets take a 46-43 lead at halftime. The Bucks stayed in the game with hot shooting from behind the 3-point arc.
Monroe and Antetokounmpo provided balance in the lane late in the game to help Milwaukee pull away.
TIP INS:
Hornets: Walker (hyperextended left knee) and G/F Marco Belinelli (finger) missed the game with the team out of playoff contention. … F/C Frank Kaminsky, who starred in college at Wisconsin, went 1 of 12 from the field for three points in 21 minutes off the bench.
Bucks: PG Malcolm Brogdon played 25 and had five points, four rebounds and three assists in his return to the floor after missing five games with a sore back. Brogdon looked a little rusty, though the rookie got valuable playing time as he prepares for his first postseason. Backup C John Henson had two points and played nine minutes in his return after missing 10 games with a sprained left thumb.
UP NEXT
Hornets: Wrap up the regular season on Tuesday at Atlanta.
Bucks: Travel to Boston to end the regular season against the Celtics.
