Bucks hold off Sixers in Parker’s season debut

Head coach Jason Kidd had set a limit of about 20 minutes for Parker, but the No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 draft watched from the sideline as Middleton and Monroe took over and led the comeback in the final minutes.

Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker takes a moment as the Bucks…

Middleton’s 3-pointer with 48.4 seconds left gave the Bucks an 89-85 lead, and he hit two game-clinching free throws with 1.9 seconds remaining, after Philadelphia scored on a basket by Jahlil Okafor.

The Bucks’ leading scorers were Middleton with 21 and Monroe with 18. Though the three starters led the team in scoring, it is hard to look past the performances of Vasquez (11 points, five assists) and Copeland (eight points, two assists) when thinking about the players that affected the game most Wednesday night.

Philadelphia remains winless on the season, dropping to 0-4 while the Bucks improved to 2-3 and earned their first home victory of the season.

Also, Michael Carter-Williams missed the game against his former team with a sore left ankle as did John Henson and O.J.

Jabari Parker made his long-awaited season debut after rehabbing back from a torn ACL suffered last December.

That’s what can happen when the Milwaukee Bucks struggle all night against the Philadelphia 76ers.