J.R. Smith scores 21, hot-shooting Cavs beat Bucks 109-80

MILWAUKEE (AP) — J.R. Smith scored 21 points and went 7 of 11 from 3-point range to lead the hot-shooting Cleveland Cavaliers to a 109-80 victory on Tuesday night over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Kevin Love added 17 points and shot 3 of 6 from behind the arc for the Cavaliers, who maintained a 3 ½-game lead over Toronto for the best record in the Eastern Conference.

LeBron James finished with 17 points and shot 7 of 9 from the field to go with nine assists. He watched the entire fourth quarter from the bench on an easy night for Cleveland, which led by 24 by halftime.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 22 points and 14 rebounds.

He couldn't keep up with Cleveland.

Moving the ball quickly around the perimeter, the Cavaliers found open shooters while the Bucks played catch-up.

The efficient Cavaliers shot 66 percent in the first half and 55 percent for the night. They had 30 assists on 41 buckets.

Smith was the biggest beneficiary of the ball movement after going 7 of 9 from 3 in the first half. It looked at times as if the Cavs were in cruise control with their big lead.

Milwaukee did at least have franchise cornerstones Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker making their typical share of highlight-reel dunks. Parker finished with 19 points on 7-of-19 shooting.

Antetokounmpo, a 6-foot-11 forward who became the primary ball-handler after the All-Star break, added eight assists, falling short of his sixth career triple-double.

Making a rare start with leading scorer Khris Middleton sidelined by a strained left calf, forward Johnny O'Bryant added 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting.

The Bucks outscored the Cavaliers 54-28 on points in the paint.

But 3-point shooting, once again, was a big problem for Milwaukee on both ends of the court.

That's a weakness especially against Cleveland, which was tied for second in the league with Portland with 817 3s coming into Tuesday. Only Golden State had more.

TIP-INS

Cavaliers: With his third 3 of the night with 6:33 left in the first quarter, Smith set the franchise mark for single-season 3-pointers with 193. Wesley Person had the previous mark with 192 in 1997-98. ... Kyrie Irving returned after missing a game with a sprained ankle and finished with 15 points in 27 minutes.

Bucks: The normally durable Middleton said he planned to play again this season after missing his second straight game. Milwaukee had four games remaining after Tuesday. ... G Jerryd Bayless (right knee) missed a third straight game.

UP NEXT

Cavaliers: At Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.

Bucks: At Boston Celtics on Friday.

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Follow Genaro Armas at http://twitter.com/GArmasAP