Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo left their 118-106 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers early on Monday night due to a groin injury.
Antetokounmpo was trying to make a move on Jarrett Allen in the post late in the second quarter at Rocket Arena, but he fell awkwardly on court after missing a layup. Antetokounmpo immediately reached down toward his groin, clearly in pain, as play went the other way.
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He got up and stayed in the game, but wasn’t moving right as he jogged down to the other end. Once play stopped, he limped immediately off the floor to the locker room.
Antetokounmpo did not return to the game, and was quickly ruled out at halftime with what the Bucks called a left groin strain. Bucks coach Doc Rivers said after the game that he didn’t have an update on Antetokounmpo’s status, but that he was set to undergo imaging on Tuesday.
“We won’t know anything until tomorrow,” he said, via The Athletic’s Eric Nehm. “Didn’t look great, I can tell you that.”
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Antetokounmpo had 14 points and five rebounds when he went down, which led the Bucks in the first half. The 30-year-old entered Monday’s game averaging 32.6 points per contest, trailing only Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić in the league. He’s also averaging 11.3 rebounds and 7.1 assists per night.
Though the Bucks were within two points at the break, they struggled to hang in there during the second half without Antetokounmpo. The Cavaliers slowly pulled away in the fourth quarter to grab the 12-point win. Donovan Mitchell dropped 37 points and had seven assists to lead the Cavaliers. Sam Merrill added 20 points on six 3-pointers, and Evan Mobley had 14 points. The Cavaliers now sit at 10-5 on the season.
Ryan Rollins led Milwaukee with 24 points in the loss, which marked their second straight and dropped them to 8-7. He went 5-of-10 from behind the arc. Myles Turner finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.
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The Bucks will return to Milwaukee to host the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday, which marks the first of a three-game homestand at Fiserv Forum.
