Butler scores 24 and Warriors win without Curry, 104-93 over Bucks

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jimmy Butler had 24 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists and the Golden State Warriors, playing without Stephen Curry, beat the Milwaukee Bucks 104-93 on Tuesday night.

Curry, who recently became the first player in NBA history to make 4,000 3-pointers, was given the night off for a mental and emotional break by Warriors coach Steve Kerr.

Buddy Hield had 15 points and six rebounds off the bench to help the Warriors improve to 5-1 on a seven-game homestand. Brandin Podziemski started in place of Curry and had 17 points and seven rebounds.

With 13 games remaining in the regular season, Golden State is 40-39 and remains in the No. 6 slot in the Western Conference.

Kyle Kuzma made five 3-pointers and scored 22 points to pace the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo added 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Damian Lillard and Brook Lopez each scored 16.

Bucks: Milwaukee couldn’t overcome a sluggish start and played from behind most of the night. Now it’s on to face Western Conference contenders the Lakers, Kings, Suns and Nuggets.

Warriors: Golden State improved to 7-3 this season and 91-150 overall in games without Curry

After Gary Trent Jr. missed a potentially tying 3-point attempt late in the fourth quarter, Podziemski came down and nailed his third 3 of the night to help secure the win.

For the sixth time this season Antetokounmpo made more free throws (10) than he did shots (five).

The Warriors conclude their season-high seven-game homestand against the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. Milwaukee heads to Los Angeles to play the Lakers on Thursday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba