The Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Philadelphia 76ers, 118-117, at Fiserv Forum on Thursday.

The Bucks (1-0) and the 76ers (0-1) delivered a thrilling contest to open Thursday’s two-game slate. The game was not decided until the final stages of the contest, and even though Philadelphia never gave up and competed at a high level until the very last play, Damian Lillard took over down the stretch. The star floor general closed things out when the Bucks needed him the most, shining brightly in his debut. Milwaukee looked like the better team in the first half, racing to a 30-23 score in the first quarter and nearly making it a double-digit game by halftime (63-54). The 76ers responded with a 31-25 score in the third quarter to show some signs of life. They even made it a one-point game in the final two minutes, but they could not complete the comeback. Despite winning the fourth quarter by a 32-30 score and draining a buzzer-beating three in the final play, the 76ers came up short, and the Bucks got the win.

Damian Lillard led the way for the Bucks with 39 points, eight rebounds and four assists while draining each of his 17 shots from the charity stripe. Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 23 points, but he also filled the stat sheet with 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks. Brook Lopez had 13 points. Bobby Portis delivered 10 points, six rebounds and two assists off the bench.

Surprisingly, Tyrese Maxey led the way for the Sixers with 31 points, eight assists, four rebounds and two steals. De’Anthony Melton had 10 points, four dimes and two steals. Joel Embiid finished with 24 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Tobias Harris impressed with 20 points, seven rebounds and two assists. Kelly Oubre Jr. was excellent off the bench and delivered 27 points while adding four boards.