Bucks Win by 50, Lakers Are Up Next

The Charlotte Hornets hit rock bottom. The Milwaukee Bucks hit just about everything they shot.

That collision resulted in the worst loss in Hornet history.

Ray Allen scored 26 points to lead the Bucks’ fearsome offensive attack as Milwaukee trounced Charlotte, 137-87, Monday night at Milwaukee.

The 50-point blowout was 10 points larger than Charlotte’s previous franchise-worst loss. The Hornets were listless and sloppy in losing their sixth consecutive game, concluding a six-game road trip without a win for the first time in franchise history.

“It can’t get much worse for us right now,” Anthony Mason said. “We need a whole lot of something different right now, and I have no idea what the problem is. We’re not used to this as a team.”

Milwaukee won its sixth consecutive home game for the club’s longest home winning streak since February 1992. The Bucks, who won a double-overtime thriller against the Wizards two nights ago, got an easy warmup for Wednesday’s showdown with the Lakers.

A sampling of the carnage:

* Milwaukee’s 137 points, 55 field goals and 46 assists were the highest totals in the NBA this season.

* The Bucks set a franchise record with 13 three-point baskets while shooting 64% from the field.

* All 10 Bucks who played scored at least eight points, and seven finished in double figures.

* Milwaukee outrebounded Charlotte, 43-30, had a 46-24 advantage in assists and forced 17 Hornet turnovers while blocking seven shots.

San Antonio 93, Utah 86--Tim Duncan scored a career-high 46 points at San Antonio to lead the Spurs back into first place in the Midwest Division.

“It felt good,” said Duncan, who outscored Utah, 19-18, in the fourth quarter. “It felt better to get the victory. After giving the effort we gave, it would have been bad to get a loss. It was a huge win. We needed it bad. We’ve played well two games in a row and now with this third game we keep rolling.”

The Spurs, who now lead the Jazz by a half game, had only two players in double figures as Terry Porter scored 16 points.

Duncan, who also pulled down 14 rebounds, was 16 of 28 from the floor and 14 of 16 at the free-throw line as he topped his previous career-high of 42 points. He scored 49.5% of his team’s points, the highest percentage in the NBA this season.

“We couldn’t do anything with Duncan tonight,” Utah Coach Jerry Sloan said. “He is a tremendous player and an obvious MVP candidate.”

Portland 107, Dallas 94--Scottie Pippen had 17 points, including three three-pointers in the decisive third quarter, to lead the Trail Blazers at Portland, Ore.

The Trail Blazers led, 52-51, early in the third when Pippen made his first three-pointer from the corner. Pippen made more long shots during the next three minutes as the Blazers went on an 18-8 run from which the Mavericks didn’t recover.

New Jersey 100, Orlando 94--Stephon Marbury scored 22 points and Keith Van Horn added 20 points and 10 rebounds at Orlando, Fla., as the Nets won for the 12th time in their last 17 games.

Vancouver 112, Boston 103--Mike Bibby scored 33 points and Othella Harrington had 27, both career highs, as the Grizzlies ended a 4-1 trip with a win.

NBA Notes

The Chicago Bulls put guard B.J. Armstrong (sore knee) on the injured list and signed guard Chris Carr to a 10-day contract. . . . The Boston Celtics put forward Adrian Griffin (sprained ankle) on the injured list and activated forward Walter McCarty.