Milwaukee Bucks win 1st NBA championship since 1971, beating the Phoenix Suns in 6 games


The Milwaukee Bucks won their first championship title in 50 years on Monday night, beating the Phoenix Suns 105-98 in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. The Suns won the first two gams of the series, and the Bucks are now only the fifth NBA team to come back and win the championship from a 0-2 deficit. Much of the credit for their victory is due to Giannis Antetokounmpo, the series MVP, who scored 50 points and had 14 rebounds and five blocked shots Monday night. This was his third game this series with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds, and his first NBA Finals.
Chris Paul, making his first NBA Finals appears in 16 seasons, scored 26 points for the Suns on Monday, and Devin Booker had 19 points. Game 6 was played in Milwaukee.
The Bucks and Suns both entered the NBA in 1968 as expansion teams, and the Bucks won their only other championship in 1971, led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — then named Lew Alcindor — and Oscar Robertson. The Suns last played in the Finals in 2010 and have never won a title.
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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